


Jealous

by YourPowerIsLimitless



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Eventual Korra/Asami Sato, F/F, Korrasami - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-20
Updated: 2015-12-03
Packaged: 2018-04-22 11:12:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 19
Words: 41,363
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4833266
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/YourPowerIsLimitless/pseuds/YourPowerIsLimitless
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"I loved you first!" she cried, her voice raising  unintentionally. She didn't bother to fight the tears that now streamed down her face. "I did... and you ignored me."</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Interference

Author's Note: This is my most successful story on fanfiction.net, with Dangerous coming in at second place. I had a lot of fun writing it, and I hope you guys have just as much fun reading it.

Inspired by Nick Jonas' song of the same name.

 

...

'Breathe, Korra, just breathe. It's not that bad- JUST SMASH HIS FACE IN ALREADY!' Korra's eyebrow twitched and she pinched the bridge of her nose. She took a deep breath. 'They're only talking- YEAH, TALKING ABOUT WHEN HE CAN GET IN HER PANTS!' She groaned and threw herself against her locker, crossing her arms. She glanced up the hall, her eyes narrowing.

At the end of the hall stood two people: one she hated, and one she loved. The one she hated was a dude named Wu. He was annoying and such a crybaby to be seventeen years old. He was so full of himself and threw himself at any girl he could. The girl he was throwing himself at now happened to be the person Korra loved. Her name was Asami Sato. To Korra, she was the most beautiful girl in the entire high school. She was incredibly smart and a wiz with mechanics. Guys came onto her all the time, and Korra hated every minute of it.

She saw how Wu started to close in on Asami and her fingers tightened on her forearms, it didn't hurt, but it was the best thing she could do to keep herself from lunging at him. Asami didn't seem to notice. Whatever she was saying, she was too into it to keep an eye on Wu's movements. Korra hated the smirk on his face. She wanted to punch it right off of him. It would probably earn her a good few days in detention, even suspension, but it would be worth it. 'Leave them alone, he hasn't done anything yet. Step in now!' She had to. She couldn't stand to continue watching this unfold in front of her. She breathed once, twice, three times for good measure. She stood up straight, puffed her chest out a bit, and tried her hardest to walk normal towards them.

"Yeah, it's pretty cool." she heard Wu say as she approached. "My aunt has, like, three badger moles in her backyard." He grinned like he was proud of himself about something.

"That's incredible." Asami said, though her voice sort of had a bored undertone to it.

"Hey, 'Sami!" Korra greeted, her voice a little rough.

Asami turned in her direction and a smile broke out on her face. Her eyes seemed to immediately light up. "Korra, hey! I was wondering where you were."

Korra came to a stop next to Asami and made a sort of protective stance beside her. Despite that she was a few inches shorter than Asami, very few dared to mess with her. Wu glanced at her and his eyebrow raised in question.

"Well, here I am." Korra replied, forcing a smile. "What's going on?"

"Wu was telling me about his aunt and his ancestry." Asami said. Korra had to form a straight line with her lips to keep from yawning. "He said he comes from a royal family that existed hundreds of years ago."

"That's right." Wu said. "The Earth Kingdom. We were a great people, before we became a democracy." He stepped closer to Asami, sending a furtive glance her way. His eyes passed swiftly up and down her figure. Korra felt the heat rising in her cheeks. "I'd be happy to show you some of our history sometime."

Just as Asami opened her mouth to reply Korra stepped between them, placing an arm around Asami unintentionally. "Gee, that sounds great and all, but Asami is really busy then. Maybe not some other time." She grabbed Asami by the arm and began to lead her away.

"But- I didn't even say when!" Wu called after them. Korra ignored him and turned the nearest corner. Her face scrunched up in a scowl.

"What was that about?" Asami asked when Korra finally let her go.

Korra shrugged, refusing to meet Asami's eyes. "I don't know, he's just really annoying."

"So?" Asami's voice sounded accusing and Korra blushed. "Is that all?"

"I didn't like how he was looking at you." Korra said, going on the defensive.

"What are you talking about?" Asami said. "You're not making any sense."

"You mean you didn't see it?" Korra questioned. Asami shook her head and Korra gritted her teeth. "He was looking at you like you were a piece of meat." She said through her teeth. "I couldn't stand watching him undress you with his eyes. It was disturbing."

"So you think I can't handle myself." It wasn't a question, and Korra immediately felt foolish.

"No, that's not what I meant-" She cut herself off and sighed. "I'm sorry, okay? I just... didn't want to see him try anything with you."

Asami's anger softened and she sighed. "It's fine, I understand. It's nice that you care." Korra relaxed a bit. "I didn't mean to come off so hard on you." Asami's eyes flickered with an amusing light. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were jealous."

Korra, taken back by Asami's playful claim, took a step back and struggled for an answer. Her cheeks darkened as she stuttered a reply. "Pffft, me? Jealous?" She forced a laugh. "Nah, be for real! I don't get jealous! Very funny, 'Sami."

Asami giggled and reached a hand out to Korra's shoulder. "Seriously, though, I do appreciate it. I don't think I'd be able to stand another story about all the exotic animals his aunt has. You're a lifesaver."

"You know me," Korra made a heroic stance. "Korra the lifesaver, saving people from boring stories everywhere." The minute it was out of her mouth, she resisted the urge to kick herself. Idiot!

To her surprise, Asami laughed again. "My hero." She pretended to swoon and they laughed.

"Walk me to class?" Asami asked.

"Yeah, sure." Korra replied, smiling.

...

Author's Note: Hope you stick around for the next chapter!

Thanks for reading!


	2. Friendzoned

Here's chapter two for you guys!

...

"Are you serious?" Bolin asked Korra later in their science class.

Korra nodded slowly, her eyes covered by her arm. She was leaning back in her chair, explaining the events of the morning to Bolin. "I don't know what I was thinking."

"'Korra the Lifesaver'!" Bolin laughed. "How did you come up with that?" Korra lifted up her arm and glared at him, forcing Bolin to stop laughing. "Sorry, but that is kind of funny."

"Because it wasn't you." Korra muttered. "It was embarrassing."

"You really can't blame yourself. Asami is really beautiful-" Korra glared at him again and he held up his hands. "Hey, I'm just stating facts here."

"I swear she's on to me." Korra said. "She called me out on being jealous!"

"Not necessarily, she was joking." Bolin said.

"Maybe she was, but she still said it." Korra argued.

"Look, Korra, I may not be a love expert, but I can tell you that you're doing everything right." Bolin said. "It's not the worst thing in the world. Girls love socially awkward-uh-people."

Korra rolled her eyes, though he couldn't see it. "As I said, you weren't there. And I don't even know if she likes girls." Korra answered, a whiny edge in her voice.

Bolin started to reply, only to be interrupted by their teacher, Suyin Beifong.

"Bolin, Korra, is there a problem?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

"No, Ms. Beifong." Bolin replied, hanging his head and folding his hands.

Korra didn't say anything, she just shook her head. She uncovered her eyes and sat up, hunching over her desk and staring at the surface.

'I'm such an idiot...' she thought. 'Sure, she laughed, but that doesn't make it any better...'

Korra had only known Asami a few years and was already smitten over her. She met Asami freshman year when Bolin's brother (and her friend) Mako introduced her to her. They were sort of dating then, but Korra wasn't very observant of Asami until sophomore year when she and Mako had broken up. Before then, Korra didn't really like or trust Asami. Following the breakup, they began to hang out and get to know each other.

"Why can't I just admit how I feel..?" Korra whispered to herself.

...

After science came gym. To her luck, she also had gym with Asami. Bolin wished Korra good luck as she headed out of the classroom. Korra nodded her thanks and rushed down the three flights of stairs to get to the gym. She made it first and hurried into the locker room so she could change before Asami arrived. She could save herself from the embarrassment of seeing Asami possibly changing and having a complete nosebleed. She grabbed her T-shirt from her backpack and threw it on quickly after she took off the one she was wearing.

She crammed her shirt into her bag grabbed her shorts, laying them out on the bench in front of her. She started undoing her jeans. "Just gotta put on my shorts, and-"

"Hey, Korra!"

Korra froze and held her breath. God, why? She didn't want to look over her shoulder, but she couldn't ignore the fact that she wasn't alone.

"Hey, Asami, I-I didn't know you were, ahem, down here already." Korra said, feeling sweat dew on the back of her neck. If she turned around, and Asami wasn't fully dressed, she knew she'd pass out on the floor then and there. Not to mention, she didn't want to change in front of her. Her fingers tightened on her basketball shorts as she continued facing the wall.

"We had a substitute today, we tricked him into letting us out of class ten minutes early." Asami said with a laugh. "He was so busy talking about cabbages he didn't even bother to check if we were lying!"

Korra nodded stiffly, finding it harder and harder to breathe with every second that ticked by. A silence hung in the air for a few seconds before she heard Asami step forward. "You okay?"

"Uh, yeah, I'm fine." Korra said. "Why do you ask?"

"Well, gym hasn't even started yet and you're already sweating." Asam teased.

Korra's hand flew to her neck and brushed against it. She swallowed hard. "It's just really hot in here, I guess."

"Maybe." There was something in Asami's tone that said she didn't believe her. More and more students began filling the locker room and Korra sighed in relief.

"Well, I'll see you out there. We're playing volleyball today, and I want to be captain." Korra glanced behind herself soon enough to see Asami disappear around the corner. 'So she was dressed...'

Korra shook her head before she could let her thoughts get the best of her and continued changing. She put on her shorts and stuffed her backpack in one of the lockers, then heads out onto the gymnasium floor. She starts walking for the warm up as her eyes search for Asami. They find her in no time flat (it's both scary and interesting how fast they did it). She's opposite Korra, walking alone. Korra smiles to herself, ready to run to her, when the spot is already filled by someone else.

His name was Hisoka. He had black hair and gray eyes, hands that could never seem to keep to themselves, and a face that made Korra angry every time she saw it. He was the football team captain and, despite his name, he wasn't reserved at all. He was loud and obnoxious, even worse than Wu. He sidled up next to Asami, who turned to him and smiled. Korra crept closer until she was only a good distance away. Close enough to hear, but far enough to not seem like she was watching them.

"How are you, Asami?" Hisoka asked.

"I'm fine, how are you?" Asami was being too polite for Korra's liking.

"Awesome." A large grin was plastered on his face now. "Had football practice earlier, roughed up a few of the newbies." He straightened his back to make himself seem taller. Korra would have applauded if she hadn't of done something similar that morning.

"Really?" Asami said. Her attention seemed to be a little off.

"Yeah, it took a while to make them focus, but" -Hisoka raised his bicep and flexed it- "nothing a little muscle can't solve!"

"Mhmm." Asami muttered. It was obvious to Korra that she wasn't really interested. Maybe she should intervene...

"You know, we have our first game tomorrow..." Hisoka began, hoping Asami would catch on.

Asami didn't reply, she was busy scanning the gym. Her eyes passed over everyone, and then she looked behind her. Her eyes locked with Korra's, a faint pleading glance in them. She mouthed the words 'help me'. Korra immediately understood and nodded, trying not to grin. She picked up her pace a little bit.

"A-anyway, I was wondering if, maybe-" Korra cut between them just before Hisoka could finish his question.

"'Sup, guys?" she said.

"Oh, hey..." Hisoka replied, not bothering to hide his annoyance. Asami and Korra exchanged glances and Asami laughed.

"Hey, if you don't mind, I'm gonna steal Asami for a bit." Korra said. "Cool? Cool."

Hisoka mumbled something under his breath as Korra separated her and Asami from him. At a safe distance, they burst out laughing.

"Korra saves the day again." Asami said, her eyes sparkling.

Korra shrugged nonchalantly and smiled back. "Like I said, that's my job!"

"I can see what you mean, though. With Hisoka, I mean." Asami said. "Since when do people think they need to act all tough to get on a girl's good side?"

"I wish I knew." Korra said.

"Y'know, if a lot of guys took after you, they wouldn't have to try very hard." Asami noted, her expression thoughtful.

"What do you mean?" Korra asked, her heart rate raising rapidly.

"Well, you're the prime example of how guys should act." Asami said. "I know, you're not a boy, but you're nice, helpful, you don't brag too much, and you're supportive. That's all a girl looks for."

Korra blushed and looked down, using her hair to cover her face. 'Friendzoning at its finest...' She sighed. A bitter feeling rose in her chest.

'Whatever, you should've seen this coming anyway...' she told herself.

"Thanks." she said.

"No problem." Asami replied , and took Korra's arm. "Now, come on! Coach said I could be captain and I picked you first!"

...


	3. Secrets

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which dinner takes a bad turn.

Author's Note: Apologizing ahead of time for this.

...

There were four teams and two courts, thus splitting the gym in half. With there being different grades, a few freshman, sophomores, five juniors, and the majority taken up by seniors, there were enough for teams. Asami wasn't lying when she said she picked Korra first, followed by Opal, Jinora, Kai, and a few others for a total of eight players on her team. Korra thanked the gods that Hisoka wasn't on their team.

Asami's team was Team Four. They went to their side of the gym and Asami told them their positions on the court. The other team took their place. It was Hisoka's team, Team Three. Korra groaned inwardly and crossed her arms. Asami walked up to her.

"Think you can serve first?" she asked.

Korra nodded. "Sure." Asami smiled before moving on to the rest of the team.

Korra moved to the corner of the court and readied herself to focus on the game. If anything, she had to give her all in this game. It'd be a long shot, but maybe she could even impress Asami. That triggered a series of possible daydreams in Korra's mind, only to be interrupted by the coach's whistle.

"Remember, one hand serve!" he said. "First one to twenty-five wins!" He blew his whistle again.

The coach's assistant became referee for Team Three and Four. She passed the ball to Korra, who caught it with one hand. She looked at the other team. Hisoka was up front, but his eyes weren't on Korra's serve. They, of all places, were on Asami. Korra's blood began to boil and she clenched her teeth behind her lips. His eyes may have been on Asami, but Asami's were on Korra. Korra tossed up the ball, her hand connected with it, and it flew over the net.

Her intention was to just startle him, maybe spike the ball so it would bounce next to him and make him jump. She misinterpreted her aim and the power she put in her serve. It made it over the net, yes, but it also hit Hisoka right in the face. He let out a cry of surprise and brought his hand to his face. The assistant halted the game and headed over to him.

"Sorry!" Korra called, fighting a smile.

"Jeez, Korra," Kai commented, grinning.

"What if you broke his nose?" Jinora said.

Korra waved her hand in dismissal. "He's fine! Nothing a little muscle can't handle, right?!" She said the last part loud enough for Hisoka to hear. Asami covered her mouth in a fit of giggles.

"He's okay!" the assistant announced. She turned and rested her eyes on Korra. "Watch your serve next time."

"You got it." Korra said, still fighting a smirk.

The assistant narrowed her eyes, picking up the ball and rolling it under the net at Korra. Korra picked up the ball and served it properly, starting the game.

It had been going so well at first. They were ahead by four points, and it was their serve. Kai was serving next. The ball went over the net and one of the other team's players just barely caught it, sending it back. It was headed towards Korra. She ran forward.

"I got it!" Her and another voice said.

By the time she realized what was going on, it was too late. Her arms went our in an attempt to catch herself. She and the other person crashed into each other and fell to the floor. The ball hit the floor and rolled away. Korra groaned and picked her head up. Her head throbbed and she winced, her eyes closed. She tried to push herself up, but her hands pressed against something soft. She heard someone clear their throat. She opened her eyes, and all color drained from her face.

There, in the middle of the floor, she lay on top of Asami. Her hand was, of all places, on Asami's breast. Korra panicked, trying to get out an apology. Asami, on the other hand, had an amused expression on her face.

"Jeez, Korra," she said, laughing. "I think you might need to go clean your nose."

Korra's entire face flushed a deep red as she scrambled to get on her feet, her hand flying to her nose. It was bleeding a little bit. Whether is was from the collision or what just happened, Korra would never know. "I-I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean-"

"It's alright." Asami said, standing up. "Accidents happen."

"You girls okay?" the assistant called. Korra and Asami nodded.

She came over and handed Korra a tissue, telling her to sit out until her nose stopped bleeding. Korra happily did so and took a seat against the wall of the gym.

...

In the end, Asami's team won by five points. After rubbing it into the other team's face, they headed for the locker rooms to change since gym was over. Opal appeared at Korra's side, nudging her with her elbow. Opal was laughing.

"I know you hit him with the ball on purpose." she said quietly.

Korra gave her a look, but her eyes gave it away. A smile tugged at the corner of her lips. "I have no idea what you're talking about." With that, she entered the locker room.

Korra grabbed her stuff from the locker and headed for the bathrooms, feeling much better if she could change in a stall rather than out in the open in front of everyone and Asami. She wondered why it didn't occur to her earlier, but it didn't matter then. She entered the last stall in the bathroom.

It wasn't very long before she heard the bathroom door open and close and the sound of footsteps approaching the sinks. Korra didn't give them a second thought. Until they started whispering.

"You saw what she did, right?" the first girl whispered.

"Who?" another voice replied. There was heartbeat of silence. "Oh, her! Yeah, who didn't?"

"That was totally on purpose." the first girl said.

"How can you tell?" the second girl asked.

"She had her eyes set on Hisoka before she aimed that ball." the first girl said. "She saw him staring at Asami."

Korra's breathing stopped and her blood ran cold. They were talking about her. Why would they be talking about her? Korra paused her changing, both eager and afraid to listen to what they had to say.

"She's jealous." the first girl said. "It's so obvious that Korra likes Asami. The only one that doesn't know is Asami! You'd think that nosebleed after she copped a feel would give it away!"

Korra took a step back. 'They know?'

"You can't blame her, Asami is gorgeous." the second girl said. "I wouldn't mind getting some of that action." Another pause. "What?"

There was an impatient sigh. "If you ask me, Asami could do better than all those guys that hit on her." the first girl said. "Korra could do better, too. Not saying that Asami is the worst choice, but-"

"You're only saying that because you like her." the second girl teased.

"No, I don't!" the first girl answered, though her voice cracked. Korra imagined she was blushing like crazy.

"Whatever, I'm not gonna make you say it." There was a grin in her voice. "But the bell is about to ring."

She heard the footsteps retreat and the door open and close again. Korra breathed out slowly. It took a few minutes for her heart to return to normal as she finished changing and left the bathroom. She kept her eyes to the ground as she headed for the doors leading outside to the hallway. Asami caught up with her.

"Hey, I have a question for you." she asked.

"Ask away." Korra said.

She noticed the blush rising in Asami's cheeks and she was fiddling with her hands. "Do you, by any chance, wish to join me for dinner tonight? I have something I need to tell you, and dinner seems to be right."

'Goddamn it.' Korra thought as her pulse picked up for the fourth time that day. 'Don't get your hopes up, Korra, stay cool.' "Yeah, sure." she replied coolly. "Is there a dress code?"

"No, not necessarily." Asami answered. "Just wear whatever's comfortable. We're going to Iroh's Jade Dragon Restaurant. Eight o'clock."

"I'll be there." Korra said.

"Great!" Asami said, and hugged her. "I'll see you later, then."

"Yeah, see you then." Korra said. Asami let her go and disappeared into the hallway. Korra watched after her, different scenarios running through her head about what would happen that night.

...

Korra unlocked the door to her house and walked inside, exhausted. Her husky, Naga, greeted her at the door, barking happily and tackling her to the floor. Korra laughed and pet her as she licked her face.

"Yes, I'm home!" she said. "I'm happy to see you, too!" She gently lifted Naga off of her and stood up, brushing her clothes off. "I bet you're hungry, right?" Naga barked in reply and Korra placed her backpack on the couch, then headed to the kitchen to get the dog food from the cabinet.

She grabbed the dog food and poured some into Naga's bowl and refilled her water. Naga sat patiently for Korra to finish and started eating when she set the bowls down in front of her. Korra went to the fridge to get herself something to drink, spotting a sticky note on the door. She picked it up. It was in her mother's handwriting.

'Korra,

Your father and I will be working late, don't wait up for us. Leftovers are in the fridge if you get hungry :)

~Mom'

Korra smiled warmly as she opened the fridge, throwing the note in the trash since she didn't need it. She grabbed the sticky notes in one of the drawers meant for notes and a pen, writing out her own just in case.

'Mom,

In case you got home before me, I went to dinner with Asami. I won't be out much longer. You and Dad can have the leftovers :)

~Korra'

She pondered over her tone in the note, like she should reword it. She didn't want it to sound like a date, especially if it wasn't. At the same time, if it was, then what would she say? Korra sighed. "What do you think, Naga? Leave it?" Naga cocked her head to the side, her tail starting to wag. Korra chuckled and decided to leave the note the way it was. If her parents asked any questions, she'd explain it then. She stuck it to the fridge and went upstairs to her room to start her homework.

...

Seven o'clock rolled around and Korra got up from her bed. She didn't want to be late to Iroh's. She opened up her closet and frowned. Her fashion sense was terrible for a girl. Of course, Asami had said there was no specific dress code. Maybe she wasn't even dressing up. You're thinking too much, just grab a nice shirt and pants. Korra shoved hangers aside, making faces at every other shirt she saw. She pulled out a dark blue one with short outer sleeves and white inner sleeves with the water symbol on the front. Being a descendant of the Southern Water Tribe that existed centuries ago, she had plenty of items that resembled her ancestry. She grabbed a pair of jeans off a hanger and headed for the bathroom to shower.

When she got out, fully dressed, it was seven thirty. With Iroh's being walking distance from her home, she figured she had enough time to take Naga for a walk before she left. It would give her time to get her thoughts straight before she went to the dinner. She grabbed her house keys, her navy blue jacket with fur around the edges, Naga's leash, and walked out the door. As she walked, her thoughts overflowed with the events of the day. Their focus was on what happened in the bathroom, and who the two girls might have been. They both had to be someone that Korra never spoke to, she didn't recognize their voices. 'One of them likes me, and they both know I like Asami...'

What if they tried to blackmail Korra with that information? Like, what if they threatened to tell Asami if Korra didn't go out with that other girl? Would she do it? Would it be worth it if she did?

"You're worrying too much." she told herself, looking up to see Naga chasing a squirrel up a tree. "You don't even know who they are yet. Forget about it."

Korra checked her watch. She had twenty minutes. She called Naga back to her and brought her home, taking the leash off of her collar and opening the door to let her in. She pet her goodbye and locked the door behind her, starting for Iroh's.

She arrived a few minutes to eight and searched the parking lot for Asami's car. When she doesn't see it, she concluded that Asami wasn't there yet. She could wait outside for her. She'd rather not go in alone. She leaned against a handicapped pole sign, shoving her hands into her pockets.

"Korra, what are you doing here?"

Korra looked up, spotting Mako and Bolin headed her way. She stood straight, confused. "Asami invited me here."

"Same here." Bolin said.

"She told us she had something she wanted to tell us." Mako said.

"Yeah, she told me the same thing." Korra said, trying to mask her disappointment. If this had been a date, Bolin and Mako wouldn't of been there.

"Any idea what it is?" Mako asked. Bolin and Korra shrugged.

"Great, you're already here!" The trio turned around to see Asami approaching. "Sorry I'm late, just barely made it out of the house. My dad was bugging me."

"It's fine." Korra said.

"Come on." Asami said, gesturing to the door. The others glanced at each other before following her in.

Iroh's was a beautiful place. It was like a fancy coffee shop. A lot of the high school students met up there over the weekends and hung out. Korra had only been there one other time, when her father was celebrating his promotion at work a while ago.

"We're seated in the back." Asami said.

They all made their way to the back, towards a corner booth where someone was already sitting. Korra stopped short, eyes wide. No one else noticed. Asami walked up to the person and grinned. The person stood up, grinning back, and wrapped his arms around Asami's waist. He leaned down and kissed her. Korra stepped back, and everything came shattering down. Asami looked at them, gesturing to the guy next to her.

"Guys, this is Niko." Asami introduced. "My boyfriend."

...

Author's Note: Just say it, you hate me xD


	4. Heartbreak

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Korra wonders why it hurts so much.

(NOTE: The following author's note was written as a response to the reviews I received on fanfiction.net. It was too funny not to share!) 

Aw, come on! We're all friends here, right? You can't hate me that much!

Korra: Yeah, I think they can.

Asami: Seriously, though, who the hell is Niko?

He's only for the sake of the story, Asami. He doesn't really exist.

Korra: Lucky him. Otherwise I'd have to-

Asami: Sweetie.

Korra: What?

Just calm down! It's only a story. Can I start writing now?

Asami: Go ahead.

( In case you couldn't tell, I'm insane xD. I can literally picture that happening if they actually could read this!)

...

The door opened with a harsh 'woosh', almost slamming into the wall behind it. Korra stood in the doorway, her expression unreadable. Naga came running, but Korra didn't give her a second glance. She trudged past her, through the living room where her father was on the couch and her mother was in the kitchen on the other side.

"Welcome home, Korra." her mother greeted. "How was the dinner?"

"Swell." Korra muttered angrily as she kept walking, going up the stairs to her room. She opened her bedroom door in a similar matter and threw herself face down on her bed. Naga lopped in behind her and jumped onto the bed. She nudged Korra with her nose, whining quietly. Korra groaned into her pillow, but reached up and scratched behind Naga's ear. She couldn't stand to face her thoughts alone. It's as if the world wanted her to remember that very moment for as long as she lived.

~Flashback~

"Boyfriend?" Korra managed to get out, eyes wide.

"When did this happen?" Mako asked, his tone cautious but not as alarmed as Korra's.

Asami blushed and Niko chuckled. "You want me to tell them?"

"No," Asami replied, shaking her head. "I will." She looked at her friends and took a deep breath. "Niko and I have been dating for a month now."

Korra's mind went up in flames and her knees threatened to buckle beneath her. Her hand flew out to a table to keep her up and swallowed large gulps of lukewarm air. 'A month...'

Mako whistled while Bolin gave a wide grin, his arms outstretched. "I'm so happy for you guys! It's good that Asami finally found someone after Mako." His brother gave him a death glare, but he paid no attention. He wrapped his arms around Niko and Asami. "This is great!"

"Uh-Bolin-you're squeezing." Asami said. Bolin let her go.

"Whoops." he said.

"It's nice to finally meet all of you." Niko said with a genuine smile. Korra's stomach twisted in a knot. "Asami has told me so much about all of you."

"She never said anything about you." Korra said before she caught herself, but she didn't stop herself either. "It's a shame when your girlfriend makes you wait a month to meet her best friends." Korra didn't mask her feeling of betrayal. Tears welled in her eyes and she blinked.

An awkward silence fell amongst them and Korra felt bad almost immediately. Her anger slowly drained out of her when she caught the shocked look in Asami's eyes. She let go of the table and sighed. "I'm...sorry... It's been a long day." She tried her best to lighten the tension she'd caused, forcing a teasing smile onto her face. "Still, a month is a long time."

Niko didn't seem affected by her outburst. "Believe me, I kept asking why she was making me wait. Guess the whole 'I don't know what my ex-boyfriend will think' played a big part here." Mako coughed an embarrassed laugh.

"Yeah, well..." he said.

"Anyway," Bolin interrupted. "We came here for a dinner and to have fun! Let's get to it!"

Why was it a booth? Why did it have to be a booth? Couldn't Korra catch one break for today? The seats were three-sided with a wide table in the middle. Niko slid in first, followed by Asami. Korra still didn't know how, but she ended up next to Asami, then Bolin, and Mako. Korra's hands were in tight fists in her lap and she glared at them.

"So, how did you guys meet?" Bolin asked like a curious child.

"It's a funny story." Niko said, laughing at some inside joke.

Ha, ha, ha... Korra thought.

Asami told about how she'd been working on some vehicle at her father's auto repair shop and, as she was coming out from under the car on the board, she rolled into him and he practically fell on top of her.

"He was bringing his mother the keys to her car." Asami explained. "I was too low for him to notice and I didn't think anyone was in front of me."

"I'm lucky she'd already put down her tools." Niko said.

Asami blushed. "That would have been a disaster."

"I still would have forgiven you." Niko said, grinning and kissing her. Korra looked to the opposite side, her teeth grinding together.

"Awww." Bolin said. "You guys are so cute!"

"Korra," Mako said. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine." Korra answered, trying to keep her voice steady.

He was about to speak again when a waiter came to their table. Everyone straightened up and Korra looked up from the corner of her eye.

"Hello, welcome to Iroh's." he said, notepad and pen in hand. "May I take your order?"

Everyone placed their orders. The waiter wrote everything down on the notepad. He told them their orders would be out soon before disappearing to the kitchen. The others managed to pick up on a conversation while Korra kept to herself, only speaking when she was spoken to. Even that was nothing more then a shrug or a half-assed reply.

Maybe it was the fact that she felt she didn't belong there. Maybe it was because she was sitting next to her crush who was snuggling with her boyfriend. Or maybe it was the concerned tone in Asami's voice when she finally asked what was wrong. Either way, Korra couldn't take it anymore. She told Mako and Bolin to let her out. They glanced at each other, but didn't ask why. They slid out of the booth and watched as Korra got up and stalked out of the restaurant.

"Where's she going?" Niko asked.

"I'll go get her." Asami said quickly, standing a rushing out behind her. "Korra!"

Korra was halfway through the parking lot when she heard Asami call her name. She stopped in her tracks, her hands in tight fists. She couldn't bring herself to look behind her. She heard Asami's footsteps cease behind her.

"Are you alright?" she asked.

"Yeah, I'm great." Korra said bitterly. "I'm awesome. I'm over the fucking moon."

Asami, surprised by Korra's use of language, took a small step back. She reached out and placed a hand on Korra's shoulder. Korra tensed and shrugged out from under her.

"Please, Korra, tell me what's wrong." Asami said.

Korra took a deep breath, looked behind her at Asami, and walked away.

~End flashback~

Her pillow was damp and she lifted her head to wipe her eyes. She didn't cry. She never cried. Okay, maybe a few time, but not that often. Naga poked her with her nose again, whimpering and putting her paw on Korra's back. Korra tried to put effort into a smile as she hugged Naga close. Her bedroom door opened and she heard the soft tread of her mother's feet move across her floor.

"Mom?" she said, her voice trembling.

"Yes, sweetie?" her mother said.

Korra broke down into a sob. "Why does it hurt so much?"

The bed sank where her mother sat. A soothing hand was placed on her back. She didn't need her daughter to tell her what was wrong. "I don't know, Korra. I don't know."

...

Author's Note: Short chapter, but I'll make up for it in the next one! I promise :)


	5. Frustration

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Korra needs to blow off some steam.

Author's Note: Haha, so you guys are hating Korra's self pity? Don't worry, she'll come around! Eventually...

...

She managed to avoid Asami all day the next day. She knew Asami's schedule, she knew the hallways she took from walking her to class. She even got away from her at lunch. With that information on her side, it was almost a stress-free day. Still, it wasn't enough. The more she thought about it, the higher her aggression and the lower her tolerance.

She needed to get rid of her anger and frustration. She needed to get her mind off of it. The best place to let off stream was the after school weight lifting class. Right when the final bell of the day went off, she was out of her seat on her way to the gym. Mako saw her in the hallway as she rushed past him.

"Hey, Korra." he said. "Where ya going?"

"Gym." was all she said as she kept going.

His eyes followed her, eyebrow raised, and he kept walking. Korra briefly thought about turning around and apologizing for her abrupt and kind of rude answer, but her feet kept their pace. She wasn't in the mood, and probably wouldn't be for another half hour. She shoved past the gym doors.

There were are least six guys there, three or four Korra recognized. There were a few girls, but they weren't doing anything accept watching the boys showing off how much they could press and lift. Korra rolled her eyes and headed over to the equipment, throwing her backpack down. She decided for the bench press first. Normally, Korra would lift less than she really could and let the guys marvel in their glory of being able to lift so much, simply because she didn't care about getting girls' attention over it. Today was different. She had too much to get out. She raised the weight from fifty pounds to one-sixty, approximately thirty pounds more than Korra weighed herself. She got on bench, gripped the handle, and lifted it off the holder.

Korra knew she probably could've gone up another ten, but she was only trying to focus her mind, not break her arms in the process. Still, it was a little too easy for her. She let her mind focus on the weight of the dumbbell, how slow or fast she lifted and lowered it, the sweat that was very slowly starting to break out with each press. She centered her breathing to her stomach.

She didn't realize she'd closed her eyes until a shadow casted over them. She opened her eyelids just enough to see who was standing above her, and almost dropped the weights.

"Hey, Korra," Asami said.

"Hey." Korra deadpanned. "What's up?"

"Mako told me where to find you." Asami said. "I was hoping to talk. About yesterday."

"Go ahead." Korra said. She decided to keep holding onto the dumbbell. It would keep her from doing anything crazy.

"I'm sorry if I put you in an uncomfortable position." Asami said. When Korra didn't say anything, she continued. "I was hoping nothing awkward would happen. That's why I was so hesitant to introduce you guys."

She watched as Korra strained to lift the weight. Her arms shook slightly as her muscles tensed and pushed upwards. From what Asami could see, Korra was lifting more than her weight and more than, if not equal to, the guys currently in the room. She couldn't help but notice how Korra's chest rose and fell with her every slow breath and how her biceps poked out from under her short sleeves. Asami raised her eyebrows, impressed, then shook her head to clear her thoughts. Korra didn't notice.

Korra did her best to shrug as she set the dumbbell onto the holder. She sat up with a groan and sighed heavily. "Whatever, it's fine." she said. She brushed the back of her hand across her forehead. "It doesn't matter."

"Are you sure?" Asami said. She knew something was still bothering her.

Korra grabbed her stuff and threw her backpack over her shoulder. She'd shower when she got home. "Yeah, I'm sure."

Without another word, Korra turned on her heel and headed for the gym doors. She could feel Asami's eyes burning into the back of her head, but refused to look. Just as she was reaching for the door to open it, a girl came up to her. She had black hair, green eyes, and her smile seemed a bit concerning.

"Hey, Korra, I saw you lifting weights." she said. "That was awesome."

"Uh, thanks, I guess." Korra said.

Asami watched as Korra left the gym and the girl that approached her stare at her retreating form. A rock seemed to settle in the pit of Asami's stomach.

On the other side of the doors, when Korra was outside, she looked back. Her eyebrows scrunched together. Her voice was so familiar...

...

"Alright, why did we have to rush over here?" Mako said with his arms crossed. Korra had texted him and Bolin to come to her because she had something important to tell them.

"Nothing bad happened, right?" Bolin asked. "Nothing happened to you or your parents? Naga?"

"Bolin, breathe." Korra said, chuckling a bit. "It's nothing like that, and Naga is behind you."

Bolin looked behind him to find that Korra was right. Naga was sitting on the couch with hoods ferret Pabu. Bolin smiled sheepishly. "Oh, right."

"Anyway." Mako said.

"Well, I needed to tell you guys something and ask a favor." Korra said, her cheeks darkening from embarrassment. "What I wanted to tell you is that, um, I sorta...like...er, liked Asami." There was a heartbeat of silence and Bolin laughed.

"You owe me and Opal thirty yuans!" he said, poking his brother. Mako grimaced and Korra's gaze swept between them.

"Wait, what?" she said.

"Mako, Opal, and I made bet on if you liked Asami or not." Bolin explained. "He thought you wouldn't tell, even if you did like her."

"Can we discuss this later?" Mako said.

"As I was saying, the favor I need from you guys is to help me get over her." Korra said.

"Is that why you left all pissed yesterday?" Mako asked.

Korra nodded. "I couldn't stand being around... Niko." she made a face at his name. "And I couldn't stand being next to them."

"I can understand that." Bolin said.

"How do you want us to help?" Mako said.

Korra shrugged. "I don't know. Anything you have to to help me forget that I ever liked Asami. And maybe help me avoid her until then."

"We could try the whole blind-date thing." Bolin suggested.

"I...don't know about that." Korra said. "I mean, it's a great idea. But those are very likely to go wrong."

"Here's what we can do." Mako said. "We can ask at the school, five guys and five girls, who would like a chance with you."

Korra sighed. If that was her best chance, she had no choice but to take it. "Fine, I guess."

"We'll start tomorrow." Mako said. "We can do this weekend for the dates."

"Okay." Korra said. "Thank you guys so much."

"Not a problem." Bolin said, giving a big smile. "You know we got you."

Korra smiled at them. Maybe this wouldn't be so bad.

...

"A D minus?!" Korra exclaimed.

The teacher nodded her head once and turned her attention to her computer. "You've barely done any homework. If you continue on like this, you'll have to repeat the class next year."

Korra sulked in her chair and covered her face with the paper in her hand. This is why she hated geometry class. She tried telling the teacher she was never good at numbers, or equations, or...well, anything that had to do with math. She tried to imagine herself, the only senior in a class full of juniors and sophomores, still learning geometry and cringed. No, she didn't want that.

"What do I have to do to bring my grade up?" Korra asked.

"I can have a tutor assigned to you that can help you in geometry. She's one of my best students in my other class." the teacher said.

"Who is she?" Korra said.

"I'm not sure if you've met her." The teacher said, standing up and going for the classroom door.. She leaned out. "You can come in."

She backed away from the door to let the girl in, and Korra could've fallen out of her chair. It was the same girl from the gym. She smiled at the sight of Korra and immediately crossed the room towards her.

"You know, I don't think you got my name before." she said. She stuck out her hand, locking eyes with Korra. "My name is Kuvira."

...

Author's Note: *yells over the fanwarring* CALM DOWN, CALM DOWN! Before you get all worked up, let me explain! I wanted to use Kuvira, and I wanted her to be the one that eventually made Asami jealous. Problem was, she was a little too old for Korra. So I bumped her age down to 17. Trust me, I don't like Koravira or whatever (since I don't ship them I don't care for the name) as much as the rest of you. Just trust me, okay?

Thanks for reading!


	6. Dreams

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Korra wakes up in the middle of the night.

Author's Note: Welcome to the next chapter! Hope you guys are enjoying it so far!

 

...

Mako and Bolin had stayed true to their promise. They went to the school and asked people that would be interested in seeing Korra and maybe dating her. The only problem was...

"I thought you said ten people!" Korra exclaimed, staring at everyone that were waiting outside of the coffee shop.

"Yeah, about that..." Bolin said, touching his fingers together. "Apparently word got out that you were having a blind date thing going on and, well, yeah."

"Maybe this wasn't such a great idea." Korra mumbled, rubbing her temples with her eyes closed.

"Why, what's wrong?" Mako asked.

Korra looked up at him. "This is way too many people!" she exclaimed. "There's no way I'll get through all of them! There has to be at least thirty of them!"

"Hey, calm down." Mako said. "We can help you. Bolin and I can set up stations. We all give them thirty seconds to impress you or us. If we like the ones we see, we'll send them to you. Sound good?"

Korra looked around at the crowd of people and sighed. "Fine," she said finally. "Fine, whatever. Let's get this over with."

"Alright, everyone out of the way!" Bolin announced, drawing attention towards them. "Come on, move!"

The sea of people separated, creating a path to the door. As Korra passed them, she felt everyone's eyes on her. Her cheeks flushed deeply as she kept her gaze to the ground. Someone had the nerve to whistle. Korra gritted her teeth and turned around, her hands clenched into fists. "Alright, who did that?!"

Mako grabbed her by her wrist. "Calm down." he whispered. He turned his attention to the crowd. "If you whistled, you're out. Go." He watched as someone retreated and left, his expression unhappy. Korra attempted to jerk out of Mako's hand, but he held her too tight.

"See, now there's only twenty-nine of them." Bolin joked. Korra and Mako glared at him and he cleared his throat. "Sorry, let's go."

They continued on their way into the coffee shop. Once inside, they asked the owner for permission to rearrange a few tables to set up some stations. The owner reluctantly agreed and Mako thanked him. Once they were done, Bolin opened the door.

Half an hour and twenty-nine guys/girls later, Korra was growing impatient. She had her face in her hands and groaned loudly. She was sure now it was a bad idea. No one impressed her, and the few that Mako and Bolin cleared weren't much better. She sighed and stood up from her table.

"Where you going?" Bolin asked through a mouthful of noodles. Korra almost laughed.

"Thanks for trying, guys, but I don't think this is working." she said. "Besides, I'm late for my tutoring session."

"What tutoring session?" Mako said.

"I'm failing geometry, so the teacher set me up with some chick named Kuvira to tutor me in it." Korra said. Mako and Bolin glanced at each other. "See you guys later."

She left the coffee shop. There was a decent amount of people left outside, but Korra wasn't in the mood. "Go home, it's over!"

There were groans and mumbles of aggravation, but the crowd dissipated. Thankful, Korra headed in the direction of her home.

...

When she arrived, she was surprised to see Kuvira waiting outside her home. She knew she'd told her where she lived, simply for the sake of meeting for tutoring, but she didn't expect to see her waiting. Kuvira saw her coming up the street and smiled, waving. Korra cautiously waved back.

"How long have you been waiting?" she asked when she reached her.

"Not very long." Kuvira said. "Probably ten minutes."

"Sorry for being late." Korra said as she pulled out her keys to open her door. "Long day."

"It's alright." Kuvira said.

She followed Korra inside her home and couldn't help but gaze at how beautiful the place was. As usual, Naga came running. Korra knelt down to welcome the dog, wrapping her in an embrace. Naga eagerly licked her face. "Hey, girl."

"That's your dog?" Kuvira asked, intrigued.

"Yeah, her name is Naga." Korra said as she scratched her head.

"Can I pet her?" Kuvira said. She took a step closer.

Korra looked at her as she stood up and rubbed the back of her head. "Uh, Naga usually isn't very good with new people."

"That's okay." Kuvira said as she got on her knees. "I'm good with animals." She held her hand out towards Naga. Naga watched carefully as she inched forward, sniffing her hand. She barked and placed her head under Kuvira's hand, wanting to be pet. Kuvira laughed, obliging.

Korra watched with raised eyebrows. "Well, if Naga trusts you I guess I don't have a reason not to." she said with a smile. She motioned for Kuvira to follow her. "We can study at my living room table."

Kuvira picked up her backpack and followed Korra into the living room. Naga trotted beside her. Korra took a seat on the couch and gestured for Kuvira to do the same. She sat down and pulled out her geometry book. She opened it up and laid it out on the table.

"Okay, so where should we start?" she asked.

"From the beginning, I guess." Korra replied, looking at her hands. "I don't really know much about geometry."

Kuvira couldn't fight the impulse to take Korra's hand. Korra's eyes widened at the movement, but Kuvira smiled. "That's fine, that's what I'm here for." she said. She took her hand away, and Korra caught herself wanting her to put it back.

'Focus, Korra...' she told herself.

Kuvira pulled a pencil and notebook out from her bag and handed them to Korra. Korra glanced at her blatantly, and eyebrow raised in question.

"You might want to take notes." Kuvira told her.

"Okay." Korra said.

She flipped open the notebook to a blank page while Kuvira searched the book for something easy to begin with. When she found the page she wanted, she put it back on the table. "Okay, we're gonna start with circumference, radius, and perimeter."

"Those all sound like the exact same thing." Korra said, her expression a grimace.

Kuvira laughed and Korra's ears rang with the sound. "Not quite, but I can see what you mean."

"Isn't that algebra stuff anyway?" Korra asked.

"Somewhat, but it can help clarify geometry depending on the formula." Kuvira answered.

Korra nodded, pretending like she understood, and let Kuvira guide her through the basics. She found it rather easy to concentrate with Kuvira figuratively walking her through every step and going back when she didn't understand. She realized for a brief moment just how close she and Kuvira were sitting after a few problems had been completed. They were close enough that their shoulders brushed whenever knew of them moved their arm. She couldn't see anything in Kuvira's that said if she minded or not, but, out of the corner of her eye, she would catch her stealing glances. Sometimes her eyes were on her face, others they seemed to be memorizing each curve of her. It took everything in Korra's power to keep from blushing.

They were just about halfway through the next problem when the doorbell rang. Korra set down her pencil and stood up. "Be right back."

She headed for the front door and looked out the peephole. Her stomach knotted. Damn it.

Korra opened the door, a fake smile plastered on her face automatically. "Hey, 'Sami."

"Hey." Asami replied, grinning.

"What's up?" Korra asked, crossing her arms and leaning against her doorframe.

"Well, I was on my way to the movies and I was wondering if you wanted to come along." Asami said.

"Why can't Niko go with you?" Korra said a little harshly.

"He's out of town to visit his grandmother." Asami said. "I have an extra ticket. Thought it would be a good chance for some girl time."

"That's sounds great, Asami, really. But I'm kind of in the middle of something." Korra said.

"Really?" Korra didn't notice the hurt undertone.

"Yeah, I'm working on geometry." Korra said.

"Oh." Asami said. "Need some help?"

"Nah, I was set up with a tutor." Korra said.

"Who?"

There was the sound of shuffling and something zipping up. Korra looked behind her just as Kuvira was coming around the corner. She had her backpack on. Asami cocked an eyebrow and glanced her up and down.

"My dad just texted me, I gotta go." Kuvira said. "Sorry."

"It's fine, go ahead." Korra said.

"Maybe we'll get more done next time." Kuvira said as she passed her. What was it with that sentence that made Korra want to turn red in embarrassment. "See you later!"

"Bye." Korra said quietly.

Asami narrowed her eyes at Kuvira's figure as she left. Suddenly, she didn't want to go to the movies anymore. "Yeah, I'll see you later too." she said.

"Asami-"

The raven-haired girl didn't turn around. Korra rolled her eyes in defeat. She closed her door and fell against it, closing her eyes.

...

Their lips moved feverishly against each other as fingers grasped desperately at clothing. Hot, heavy breathing filled the silence. Quiet sounds met ears as hands ventured to unexplored territory. She was holding her body close to hers, creating friction between them. One of them whimpered.

"Korra..." a voice whined. Fingers tugged on her shirt hurriedly. "Please..."

Korra nodded once, drifting downwards and letting her lips discover new places that would make her unknown lover murmur her name. They traveled up to her ear, kissing a trail to the base of her neck. Her teeth came out to play, nipping at the flesh. Her lover reared and moaned, her forehead hitting her shoulder.

"Please..." she hissed through her teeth again.

"I am..." Korra said, her voice low and husky like. "Relax..."

Their bodies collided and moved together in an unspoken rhythm, causing sparks to fly through their nerves. Her lover gasped and her head fell back, giving Korra a perfect sight of her neck and jawline. Her face finally came into view and-

Korra awoke with a jump, her heart a sledgehammer in her chest. Her breathing was ragged and uneasy. She felt an uncomfortable heat spreading over her skin and threw her covers off her body. She sat up and stared at the floor. Her hair dangled in front of her eyes and sweat prickled on her face. She needed air. Cold air. Slowly, she stood from her bed. Naga, who'd been asleep by the foot of her bed, picked her head up and yawned. Her tail beat quietly on the carpet and Korra put a finger to her lips.

"Stay." she whispered. "I'll be right back."

She crept to her door and pulled it open slowly to keep it from creaking. She poked her head out into the hall. Her parents' door was slightly ajar, but she could hear her father's snores. On her toes she left her room and made a beeline for the stairs, then the front door. She opened it and stepped outside. The air was cool against her heated skin and she sighed gratefully, closing her eyes. Almost immediately after she did, they snapped open again. She heard footsteps behind her.

"Korra?"

She let go of her breath. It was her mother. "Hey, mom."

"What are you doing up this late?" Senna said.

"Couldn't sleep." Korra answered. "Too hot in my room, I guess."

"Well, don't stay down here too long." Senna said.

"Don't worry, I won't." Korra said. Even as she spoke the promise, she knew it wasn't necessarily true.

She heard her mother return upstairs and looked up at the night sky. All she could think of, all she could see in her mind, were those emerald eyes from her dream...dark and clouded over with false desire.

...

Author's Note: Sheesh! You can make up your own assumption of who was in Korra's dream, I'm not giving anything away! Hope you enjoyed!

Thanks for reading!


	7. Confessions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which things gets a little testy.

Author's Note: Thanks, you guys, for being patient! My life has been hella hectic lately because life has a tendency to be an ass to me and finding enjoyment in it.

 

...

"Korra, are you okay?" Opal asked later that day in history. She was waving her hand in front of Korra's face, smiling a little. "Earth to Korra, anyone home?"

"Huh?" Korra muttered, blinking.

"You look like you've barely slept." Opal said.

"Oh..." Korra said.

"Did you get any sleep?" Opal said, confused.

Korra shook her head. "Well, I got some sleep. Then I had a nightmare and couldn't go back."

"Ah, okay." Opal replied, though something in her tone said she didn't believe her.

Korra was sort of lying. Only a little. She did get some sleep, and she did have a dream that basically kept her up all night thinking. It just wasn't a nightmare. How was she supposed to describe a dream, that kind of dream, she had of her tutor to someone? Yeah, yeah, it's almost impossible to control your dreams so it's not like it was on purpose. Still it was strange, dreaming of Kuvira.

'But...it can't mean anything...' Korra thought. I barely know her!

Sure she was smart as hell, nice, and she certainly wasn't bad looking. But to fall for someone she just met seemed a bit extreme. And, even if she did, it's not like Kuvira's liked her back. The possibility of that was probably slim to none. It was obvious Korra had trouble with girls.

"Don't think too much about it..." she told herself under her breath.

"What?" Opal said.

"Oh, um, nothing." Korra said.

"Hey, Korra." a new voice said. Korra's heart stopped.

"Hey, Kuvira." she said. Had she always been in her class? Of course she wouldn't know. She never talked to her up until three days ago.

"You didn't forget about our tutor session after school, did you?" Kuvira asked, her voice teasing.

Korra cleared her throat. "No, of course not." she answered.

"Good." Kuvira said. "So, should I just go straight to your house after?"

"Uh, yeah. Sure." Korra said.

"Alright. See you later, then." Kuvira said, leaving to go to her desk.

The minute she was out of earshot, Korra felt a poke in her side. She turned and stared at Opal, who giggled.

"Someone has an admirer." she said.

Korra made a face. "What are you talking about?"

"She likes you." Opal said. "You mean you couldn't tell?"

Korra shrugged. "I don't know, I guess."

"Well, you could do worse." Opal said. "She is very nice. At least, that's what my brother told me."

"Your brother?" Korra asked.

Opal nodded. "Yeah, he dated Kuvira for a while. He never really told me why they broke up, but he never said she was a terrible person."

"Wait, wait, wait." Korra said, waving her hands in front of her. "Your older brother dated Kuvira? Isn't he, like, twenty?"

"Bataar Jr., yeah." Opal said. "It was a while ago, though. I think last year. I'm not sure if they talk anymore though." Her face brightened when she smiled. "I could talk to her for you."

"Why?" Korra said.

"Bolin told me how the blind date thing blew up in your faces." Opal confessed, turning red. "And I'd love to help you get over-"

Korra clamped her hand over Opal's mouth, gritting her teeth. "Don't say it out loud!" she whisper-yelled. "How do you even know about that?"

"You really give me less credit than I deserve." Opal said as she pushed Korra's hand away. "It's not that hard to tell you're in love with her."

Korra sat back in her chair and crossed her arms, staring intently at the floor. "It isn't fair."

"What do you mean?" Opal said.

"How is it that you, Bolin, Mako, and spirits' know who else know that I like Asami except her?" Korra said.

"I don't know. Maybe she's just that oblivious." Opal said.

'No, she's too smart to be that oblivious...' Korra thought. "Whatever, it's not like I had a chance with her anyway."

Opal opened her mouth to say something, then decided against it. She looked at her hands folded on her desk. "I can help you, though."

Korra couldn't help but smile and met Opal's eyes. "Alright, fine."

Opal smiled back. "Great! I'll talk to her later, I have chemistry with her."

"Thanks, Opal." Korra said, surprised at how okay she was with this.

"Don't worry about it." Opal said with a dismissive wave of her hand. "Happy to help."

At that moment the teacher walked in and Korra sat up straight, hoping for her to teach something that would help get Korra's mind off of everything.

...

She knew something was up. Something, anything, wasn't right. She saw the way that Kuvira girl looked at Korra. Like now. The way they were talking across the gym. Laughing. There was just something...off about it. Asami narrowed her eyes, a scowl on her face. She didn't understand why, or how, but she highly disliked Kuvira. She didn't know what to make of it. She was confused. Her, of all people, confused. It's not like Kuvira ever provoked her in any way. They never talked.

Asami knew herself too well to not know what was going on. When she was with Korra, she felt something there. She needed to know what it was. Maybe it was curiosity. Asami couldn't lie and say it never occurred to her to look at another girl. She checked out Korra lifting weights, for spirits' sake! So, maybe she was curious. Or jealous. Jealous that, out of no where, Korra had time for everyone but her. Yeah, that made more sense. Asami would know automatically if she was developing feelings for the other girl.

"Hey, Asami, you okay?"

Asami snapped out of her reverie and looked beside her. Jinora was watching her with concerned eyes.

"Oh, hey, Jinora." she said.

"I'm picking up a bad vibe from you." Jinora said. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." she lied, knowing that Jinora would see through her lie.

"You look like you're trying to electrocute someone from across the room." Jinora said jokingly.

You couldn't be any more right. Asami thought unintentionally.

"It's nothing, really." she said. "Just thinking too much."

"I can understand that." Jinora said.

Asami kept herself from glaring at Kuvira and Korra for the sake of Jinora not knowing what was actually going on. But she couldn't shake the feeling that whatever was happening between Korra and Kuvira wasn't a good thing.

"I'm serious!" Korra laughed, her hands in front of her. "By the time I found her, she'd already torn my favorite jacket to shreds!"

"What'd you do?" Kuvira asked, giggling.

"What could I do? I wouldn't let her inside for a week!" Korra said. "Naga wasn't happy."

"But you did feed her." Kuvira said.

"Even as a puppy she ate like a polar bear." Korra said.

"What kind of jacket was it?" Kuvira said.

"It was a dark blue with a white and baby blue pendant like thing attached to the collar." Korra said. "It was given to me from a family friend. Her name is Katara. Her husband had bought it for her when they married."

"That's so sweet." Kuvira said, smiling.

"Yeah, I just wish I could have meet him. He passed away long before I was born." Korra said. "Katara told me he was a really goofy person, even as an adult. Apparently, I remind her of him."

Kuvira didn't say anything, she looked too deep in thought. The coach blew his whistle, bringing everyone to attention.

"Alright, today we're playing basketball!" he said. "Two teams! I'll need some volunteers for captains." Few people raised their hands, including Kuvira and Asami. The coach gazed at everyone before finally settling on them. "Asami, Kuvira, you guys are up!"

Asami and Kuvira crossed to the center of the gym while everyone gathered at one end. There was a bitter atmosphere settling in the room as the two captains stood beside each other. The coach took his place in front of them. "Choose your teammates wisely. They can either be your greatest ally, or your worst enemy."

"I think you're exaggerating a bit, sir." his assistant said.

"I never read too far into anything, Zhu Li!" Varrick said. He turned back to Asami and Kuvira, pulling a coin out of his pocket. "Call it."

"Heads." Asami said.

Varrick flipped the coin and caught it in midair, slapping it down on the back of his hand. He pulled his hand back. "Tails! Maybe next time, Sato." he said. "Kuvira, take your pick."

"Korra." Kuvira said.

Everyone's eyes fell on Korra and she blushed from embarrassment. She walked slowly up to Kuvira's side, completely unaware of Asami's glaring green eyes.

"Hisoka." Asami said.

"Opal." Kuvira said.

"Jinora."

"Kai."

"Jinwei."

"Weijin."

It seemed more like an unspoken battle than just simple team selection. The way Asami was "aggressively" picking team members and Kuvira calmly saying their names. Korra's gaze swept between both of them, confusion obvious on her face. Not once did the captains look at each other, but there was an odd tension in the air.

"Okay, teams, I shouldn't have to explain the rules of basketball but I will anyway because I want to and I can." Varrick said. Zhu Li rolled her eyes. "Hold the ball while you're running is traveling. Your team must get the ball into the basket opposing you in order to count. We're going up to thirty."

The teams room their places on the court. Varrick passed the ball to Kuvira then turned to look at Zhu Li. "Zhu Li, do the thing!" Zhu Li blew the whistle and the game began.

Kuvira immediately passed the ball to Kai, who was open on the far end of the court. He caught it and began dribbling it, searching for an opening. Opal was waving her arms near the basket and he rushed forward, neatly sliding past Hisoka who made a swipe for the ball as he ran by. Korra observed from the sidelines, picking out advantage points and weak spots. There was an opening right behind Asami that no one seemed to be covering. Korra sighed, forcing herself to let go of her restraint towards Asami. This was a game, and they weren't teammates.

Korra ran forward, taking refuge behind Asami. Kuvira had the ball again and was looking for someone to pass it to.

"Kuvira!" Korra called, her hand out.

Kuvira glanced at her and nodded. She ran closer and bounced the ball towards Korra. Asami looked behind her, shocked that Korra was behind her. Korra caught her eye as she grabbed the ball and looked away a second later, heading for the basket. She had a straightaway to the basket and took her shot from a few feet away. The ball soared and everyone held their breath, watching as it flew to the net. It made a clean fall into the net and Kuvira's team erupted into to cheers.

"Great first shot." Kuvira said, patting Korra's shoulder.

"Thanks." Korra said, smiling at her.

Asami wished she could say the same.

...

Asami left the gym when class was over, her backpack slung over her shoulder and her gaze to the floor. As she ascended the stairs to the first floor (the gym was in the basement), she could hear talking outside the double doors.

"What do you expect us to do?" That sounded like Mako.

"I don't know." Definitely Korra's voice. Asami hadn't noticed she'd left before her. "I mean, I can't avoid her all the time. She's in two of my classes."

"But you want us to intervene when necessary?" Bolin. "Like, keep an eye out for when she's coming?"

"Please. I'm struggling right now." Korra said. "I think I may have found someone to keep my mind off of her."

"Who?" Mako and Bolin said in unison.

No matter how hard Asami strained to listen, she couldn't hear the name Korra must have whispered. She dared to take a step closer.

"Really?" Bolin said. "Are you sure?"

"No, not entirely." Korra answered. "We just started talking, but I think there's something there. Something worth trying."

"Well, whatever the outcome, we've got your back." Mako said.

"Thanks, guys." Korra said.

Asami heard footsteps retreating from the doors and continued up the stairs. She walked out the doors and looked around, but she didn't see Korra or the brothers in either direction. She sighed and headed to her own class, frustration at the forefront of her mind.

...

Korra flexed her fingers and groaned in aggravation. She was home now, practicing her tenor saxophone and trying to play the song of the Four Seasons. She was good, yes, but it still hurt her fingers to play. It had been her father's idea for her to play an instrument, and he chose the tenor sax. She'd been playing since she was ten.

"Of all things to practice..." she muttered, bringing the instrument to her lips again.

She was too focused on the sheet music to notice she was being watched from her doorway. The notes from the saxophone resounded against the walls of the room in a beautiful rhythm.

"I didn't know you play." Kuvira said from the doorway.

Korra jumped, ceasing her playing and looking up at Kuvira. "What are you doing here?"

"Your mother let me in." Kuvira answered as she entered Korra's bedroom. "You sound great."

Korra turned red, removing the strap of the instrument from around her and setting it down. "Thanks."

"What song was that?" Kuvira asked.

"Everything I learn I learn from a family friend." Korra joked, laughing. "His uncle used to sing it to him when he was younger."

"Wow." Kuvira said. She took her backpack from her shoulder. "So, do you want to study here?"

"Sure." Korra said, clearing a space on her bed.

...

Author's Note: If you're wondering what the song was that I'm referring to, it's the song Iroh sang "Winter, Spring, Summer and Fall" aka "Four Seasons." There are plenty more references in this chapter, so see if you can find them all!

Thanks for reading!


	8. Chance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which a gathering in the park becomes awkward.

Author's Note: How well do you think I captured Varrick and Zhu Like in the last chapter? I was originally going to include a workshop class and have them teach that but gym teacher was just calling to me xD

Oh, and pardon my terrible explanation of football. Not a fan of the sport.

...

Asami knew it was wrong. She knew that she'd be in trouble with herself if she was caught, but she couldn't help herself for some odd reason. She wasn't quite sure why she felt the need to watch Korra's interaction with Kuvira, but she wanted to see exactly why Korra had limited her interaction with her. Which is why she was currently standing close by to the entrance, waiting for Korra and Kuvira to emerge from it. School had just ended and they had yet to show up.

"Hey, Asami." Mako said as he came through the doors. "What are you doing?"

"Nothing." Asami snapped a little too harshly at him. She had no patience for him, being an accomplice to whatever was going on with Korra.

"No need for the attitude, just curious." Mako said, his hands up. "But if you're waiting for Korra, you kind of already missed her."

Asami flustered and looked pointedly at him. "Who said I was looking for Korra?"

"Lucky guess." Mako answered, the corners of his lips tugging into a short smile.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Asami was becoming fed up with Mako's smart ass comments. "And what do you mean I already missed her?"

Mako full out laughed that time. "See? I knew it. She left through the side doors."

"Well, where'd she go? Asami asked.

"Hell if I know." Mako said with a shrug.

Asami groaned and turned on her heel, trying her best not to stomp down the stairs. When she was far enough away, Mako laughed and opened the front door. "She's gone, you're clear!"

Korra appeared, letting go of the sigh she'd been holding. "Thanks, Mako."

"No problem." Mako said.

"Why do you think she was looking for me?" Korra asked.

"I don't know, I was only kidding." Mako said, looking off at the direction Asami had disappeared in. "I didn't expect her to actually be looking for you." He turned his attention back to Korra. "So, when are you gonna make the moves on Kuvira?"

Korra shoved him into the railing and he laughed. "I told you, I'm not sure if I like her yet. Opal talked to her like she promised, but she couldn't get her to say anything directly about her feelings towards me."

"I'm sure it'll work out." Bolin said, coming up behind Mako. "I can see where Kuvira might like you."

Korra smiled. "I appreciate the optimism." She started down the stairs and looked back at them. "So I'll see you guys later at the park."

"Yep." Bolin said.

Korra jumped down over the rest of the stairs and caught up with Kuvira, who was waiting at the edge of the schoolyard for her.

"Hey." she said one she reached her.

"Hey." Kuvira said, smiling. "Um, if you don't mind me asking, why are you avoiding Asami?"

Korra laughed nervously as they started walking. "Oh, well, I'm sure it's no secret that I liked her. But she already has a boyfriend and I'm trying to get over her before we start talking again."

"That's understandable." Kuvira said. "Is it working yet?"

"Sort of." Korra said. "I'm considering someone else, but I'm not sure yet."

"Can I know who it is?" Kuvira asked.

"No, not yet." Korra said with a smile. "But you might end up being the first to know."

...

~1 hour later... ~

"God, this is so frustrating!" Korra groaned, dropping the pencil onto the table.

"Just relax, I'm sure you'll get it." Kuvira said.

"You've been tutoring me for the past week and I still can't understand!" Korra said. "I thought I would've known something by now, but I can't process anything!" She sighed and put her face in her hands. "This is pointless."

Kuvira didn't say anything right away. Instead, she placed a calming hand on Korra's shoulder. A shudder ran down Korra's arm as she looked back up at Kuvira. She was smiling at her.

"You should know I had trouble with this in the beginning of the year." she admitted. "I didn't know anything either."

"So...who helped you?" Korra asked.

"Suyin Beifong." Kuvira said.

"You mean Lin Beifong's sister?" Korra said. "She taught you?"

"Well, tutored me." Kuvira said. "She sort of took me in."

"But... I thought you lived with your father." Korra said.

"I do, but he's too sick to take care of me. I'm all he has left." Kuvira said. "I lost my mom when I was little."

Korra overlapped Kuvira's hand with her own. "I'm so sorry, I didn't know..."

Kuvira's smile became happier when she looked at Korra again. "It's alright. It's not the worse thing in the world."

Korra's cell phone rang before she could say anything. She stood up, giving Kuvira an apologetic look. "Sorry," she said as she took her phone out of her pocket. She glanced at the screen. "It's Mako. I'll be right back."

She left her room and answered her phone. "Hey, what's up?"

"We, um, kind of have a problem." Mako said, his voice cautious.

"What is it?" Korra asked.

"Someone told Asami that we were meeting at the park." Mako answered.

"I'm sorry!" Bolin said from the background. "I didn't mean to! She forced it out of me!"

"Telling you that she can hook you up with tickets to a Pro-Fighting Match isn't force!" Mako shot back.

Korra pinched the bridge of her nose, gritting her teeth. "Damn it." she muttered.

"She already knows you're coming." Mako added.

"Then tell her I'm not!" Korra said almost in a shout. She lowered her voice. "Tell her I got sick or something!"

"Bolin made it pretty clear that you'll be there no matter what." Mako said.

"I'm weak, okay?!" Bolin yelled.

Korra groaned. "Fine, fine. I'll be there. But I'm bringing a friend."

"Okay, see you soon." Mako said before hanging up.

Korra groaned again and leaned against the wall. What could she do now? She knew that she'd lose it with Asami there. There was only one option. She sucked in a breath and returned to her room.

"Is everything okay?" Kuvira asked.

"There's been a change of plans." Korra said hesitantly. "How would you like to go to the park with me and my friends?"

...

~At the park...~

Asami pulled up to the park, Niko in the passenger seat. She pulled over, parking the car and taking out the keys. She held her breath, worried about what the outcome would be after today.

"Are you okay?" Niko asked her, taking her hand.

Asami smiled at him, some of the weight on her heart lifting. "I'm fine."

Niko frowned. "I can tell you're lying." He laid a hand to her cheek that time. "Just tell me what's wrong."

"It's nothing, I promise." Asami said. She took his hand from her face, but didn't let it go. "I'm just kind of...nervous, I guess."

"Why?" Niko said.

"It's been a week since I actually had a conversation with Korra." Asami said, looking down. "I just want to know why."

"Is it because of me?" Niko said.

"No, baby, of course not." Asami said.

She let go of his hands to undo her seatbelt and opened the door, closing it behind her. Niko did the same and they walked hand in hand to the park. She spotted Mako and Bolin waiting by a bench, a football in Mako's hands. They were in the middle of a conversation when Asami walked up. There was no sign of Korra.

"Hey, guys." she said, grinning.

"Hey, 'Sami. Niko." Bolin said, returning the smile.

"Glad to see you guys made it." Mako said.

"Glad you guys let me come." Niko said.

"Korra's not here yet?" Asami said.

Mako's gaze went past her and he nodded behind her. "Actually, here she comes now."

Asami turned to look where Mako was. He was right. There was Korra...with Kuvira...holding her hand.

"Hey!" she called as she got closer. "I hope you guys don't mind, I invited Kuvira."

"Not at all." Bolin said.

Asami resisted the urge to make a face. Speak for yourself.

Mako stood up from the bench, clapping the football between his hands and grinning. "Are we gonna stand around and talk all day, or are we gonna play?"

"Hell yeah, we're gonna play!" Korra said.

"You play?" Mako asked Niko.

Niko laughed. "I don't like to brag, but I was the best quarterback at Northern Temple High."

"Then you're on my team." Mako said, passing him the ball.

Bolin high-fived Korra. "Alright!" he said.

They took their positions in the clearing near the center of the park. Asami took the chalk from Bolin and drew lines in the grass, marking the area for touchdown. Both teams stood before them.

"Losers buy lunch tomorrow!" Mako declared.

"You're on!" Korra said.

"Hut! Niko said aloud, standing straight and holding up the ball. Mako ran out, his arms up. Niko aimed and threw the ball. Mako reached out to grab it when Bolin jumped in front of him, grabbing it and holding it close to his chest when he hit the ground and somersaulted back onto his feet. He started running, Mako close behind.

"Bolin, over here!" Korra said, signaling from the end zone.

Bolin ducked under Niko and threw his arm back, tossing the ball forward. Korra jumped up, catching the ball in midair and landing on her feet.

"You're off to a great start, guys!" she taunted. "I can already taste the five flavored soup!"

On the sidelines, Asami and Kuvira stood a fair distance away from each other. Asami had her arms crossed and Kuvira was leaning against a tree, her eyes on Korra the entire time. Asami wanted so badly to speak to her, but she was worried she would say something she'd end up regretting later. She bit her lip and turned to Kuvira.

"So, you're the girl who's been tutoring Korra in geometry." she said, starting off easy.

"You already know that." Kuvira said without looking back at her. "You don't have to pretend you like me, I know you don't."

"No, I wasn't-" Asami began. That's when Kuvira looked at her, causing her to freeze mid sentence.

"You envy me because I've been taking up so much of Korra's attention." she stated like she was bored of the conversation already. She looked back out at the four of them tumbling in the grass, the football long forgotten on the edge of the chalk. "I don't blame you, I'd be pretty upset too if someone randomly came up and took my best friend from me as well."

Asami blinked, not quite sure about what was going on. "What are you talking about?"

"What I mean is, you're jealous." Kuvira said.

Korra tackled Mako to the ground, laughing as Bolin called a dog pile and threw himself on top of Korra. Niko was too busy laughing to do follow suit.

"I'm not jealous!" Asami said angrily.

"Oh? Then why were you waiting for Korra earlier?" Kuvira questioned. It was scary how calmly she talked without sounding accusing.

"I just wanted to talk to her." Asami said. She felt like she was under interrogation.

"No, you wanted to see exactly what was so different about me that made Korra not want to be around you anymore." Kuvira said. She looked back at Asami again. "I can tell you for sure, it has nothing to do with me."

"How so?" Asami demanded.

"I've liked Korra for a while now." Kuvira said. "She's a very warm and kindhearted person. She's been through too much pain."

"Pain?" Asami said. "What do you mean 'pain'?"

Kuvira didn't answer, seeing that Bolin, Mako, Korra and Niko were making their way over to them. Korra patted Mako on the back.

"Looks like you and Niko are buying lunch tomorrow!" she said.

"We didn't even finish the game!" he said.

Korra shrugged. "Doesn't matter, we scored and you didn't!"

Mako rolled his eyes. "Aw, whatever!"

"Did you have fun?" Asami asked Niko when he approached her.

"Minus the fact that I now owe everyone lunch, I'm great." he said, wrapping his arms around her and kissing her.

Korra looked down at her watch. "Oh, man, I gotta go!" she said. "I forgot about Naga. I knew I should've brought her with me." She took Kuvira by the hand, using her free one to wave the others goodbye. "See you all tomorrow!"

Asami watched them go, an unsettling feeling forming in her chest.

...

Korra and Kuvira arrived at Korra's house not too long after and stood on the porch. Korra was biting her lip.

"Did you have fun?" she asked.

"You mean watching you wrestle with them?" Kuvira said, laughing. "I had a great time."

"Good." Korra said, relief shadowing her face.

"I'd better go." Kuvira said. She started to leave when she turned around, giving Korra a kiss on the cheek. The darker blushed madly. "Thanks for inviting me."

"N-no problem." Korra said as she watched Kuvira leave.

She opened the door to her home, walking inside and shutting the door behind her.

"How was your time at the park?" her mother asked.

"It was great." Korra said, a stupid grin slapped on her face.

...

Author's Note: Well, that's that. And all of you that wanted more jealous Asami, you're welcome :) See you in the next chapter!

Thanks for reading!


	9. Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which two weeks pass.

~Two weeks later... ~

They haven't seen each other in forever. Or, it feels like forever. Two weeks to be exact. Korra didn't really mind, though. To her it was just a huge relief. With the help of Mako, Bolin and even Kuvira, Korra managed to avoid Asami at any given moment. It wasn't as hard as she'd originally thought it would be. That doesn't mean she didn't miss her though. Don't get her wrong, Korra loved being with Kuvira. They'd actually made it official the day after the park event. Still, that didn't keep a familiar sadness from invading Korra's still healing heart. On the rare occasions she'd catch a glimpse of Asami, she could see nothing but sadness on her face.

"What do you think is wrong with her?" she'd asked Opal when they were at lunch.

Opal looked at Asami, who'd already given her attention to Riyu. She shrugged. "Beats me. Maybe it's personal or something."

"Yeah, maybe..." Korra said, though she doubted it completely.

Despite all of the concern she had for her friend's well-being, she restrained herself from getting involved. It wasn't worth the risk of getting roped in again when she was already so close to getting over her. She hated to see Asami suffering, though.

"Are you okay?" Kuvira asked her later that day.

"Yeah." Korra lied, but her gaze was casted to the ground. She knew the minute she said it that Kuvira would know she was lying.

Kuvira took Korra's hand and stepped in front of her, placing her other hand on Korra's cheek. "You know I know you're lying." she said. She gave Korra's hand a reassuring squeeze, making her look up. "You can tell me what's wrong."

Korra smiled. "I know. It's just...I'm kind if worried about Asami. She's seemed pretty down lately, and I don't know why."

Kuvira's expression fell further. Her jade eyes searched a blue ocean and she sighed. "You can't worry about it too much. If I becomes too much for her to handle, whatever it is, I'm sure she'll tell someone. Maybe she'll find a way to tell you."

"But what if she doesn't want to?" Korra said. Her voice saddened with every word. "What if she doesn't want to tell me anything because I've been avoiding her for two weeks?"

"She knows you still care about her. I'm sure." Kuvira said.

Korra looked down and Kuvira smiled, pulling her in for a kiss. Korra let her and gave in to her smile. She relaxed in Kuvira's embrace. "Okay, okay. Maybe you're right. Maybe I'm overreacting."

"I'm sure she'll come around, and so will you." Kuvira said. She dropped her hand from Korra's face and took her spot beside her again. "Now, what do you say we go to the diner and get some lunch?"

"Sure." Korra said, laughing. "Let's go."

...

Asami always knew how to get her mind off of things that bothered her. Simply volunteering time at her father's auto shop always seemed to do the trick. This time, however, was different. It only made her thoughts and emotions crumble together worse than before. She was currently working on the engine of a satomobile that had burnt out on its owner. The communicator was in fine condition, but the windings were a pain. Especially since she couldn't keep her focus.

"Who the hell does she think she is anyway?" she muttered angrily as she struggled to put the windings into place. "Telling me about my feelings like I don't know myself." Her ministrations became more and more rushed and agitated the more she thought about her conversation with Kuvira. "Thinks she can just talk to me like- shit!"

She pulled her hands back from the engine, holding her hand. She was too deep in thought to realize what she was doing was causing sparks to fly. The copper windings shocked her. She growled in frustration and lifted her goggles up off her eyes.

'This isn't working'. she thought. 'I can't do this.'

She despised the fact that Kuvira could have that much affect on her. It was almost like she was trying to purposely get under her skin, even though she knew that was wrong. She was stating facts. Facts that had yet to be proven. Asami took off the goggles completely and sat down in a nearby chair. She stared at her gloves before taking those off too.

"Someone looks like they could use some cheering up." Niko said as he came in through the front door.

Asami smiled when he approached her, standing up to meet him and putting down her things. "That would be nice." she said.

He laughed and wrapped his arm around her waist. He leaned down for a kiss and Asami let him, but she didn't feel all that into it. She pulled away and looked down, placing her hand on his chest.

"What's the matter?" Niko asked.

"I'm...sorry, I've just had so much on my mind." Asami replied.

"Is it Korra?" Niko said, positing himself to see Asami's face. She closed her eyes but didn't answer. Niko used his finger to lift her head up by her chin. "Everything will be okay." he said in a soothing voice. "Things will turn out right in the end."

"You make it sound like it's so easy." Asami said.

"It's not." Niko said. "And you shouldn't expect it to be. Everyone has their reasons."

"I just want to know what I did to make her want to stay away from me." Asami said. She could feel the tears brimming in her eyes. The pad of a Niko's thumb swept across her cheek. It was wet.

"Hey, hey," He hugged her closer. "It's okay. Korra isn't a bad person. You know that. Whatever is going on in her mind will pass and you guys will be best friends again."

Asami couldn't say anything, but she hoped that what Niko was saying was right. Maybe it didn't have anything to do with her, but that didn't explain why she was still fine around Mako and Bolin. It was starting to give her a headache.

"Asami, are you alright?" her father's voice came from his office doorway.

"Yeah, dad." she said, quickly wiping her eyes before she turned around. "I'm fine."

Hiroshi smiled at her softly before looking at Niko. "Nice to see you, Niko."

"Hello, sir." Niko said.

"I'm sending out someone to get lunch for us if you want to stay." Hiroshi said.

"That would be great, thank you." Niko said.

Asami removed herself from Niko's arms and grabbed the gloves and goggles off the chair. "I gotta get back to work." she said. "This car isn't going to fix itself." She looked at Niko. "You can sit down in that chair if you want. This shouldn't take very long."

Niko being there did help clear the painful thoughts that were persistent in taking over her mind, but that didn't change the rock that grew heavier with each second it sat on her heart.

...

"I'm not sure what to do anymore, Jinora." Korra said.

"What do you mean?" Jinora asked.

"I love being with Kuvira, but I still want Asami." Korra confessed. "And it's tearing me apart inside."

Korra had been asked to help watch Meelo, Rohan and Ikki by Tenzin, who was called upon for an important meeting. Pema wasn't able to, seeing that she was going for a "Girls Night Out" with her friends. Thus resulting in Korra and Jinora crowded in the living room with Ikki and Meelo watching a movie and Rohan napping in his room.

"Why don't you just tell Asami how you feel?" Ikki said, unable to resist putting her two cents in.

"No way, Asami's mine!" Meelo said.

"You're too young for her, Meelo." Korra said.

"Age is just a number!" Meelo said, standing up. "Who wouldn't want a piece of this?" He puffed out his chest and flexed his arms with a grin.

"I don't." Ikki said, laughing.

"You're my sister, you don't count!" Meelo argued.

"Both of you be quiet." Jinora said. She looked at Korra. "But Ikki is right. Why don't you just tell her?"

"And risk a lifetime of embarrassment? No, thank you!" Korra said. "Besides, things are going great with Kuvira. I don't want to mess it up so soon."

"Well, I can't tell you how to make your decisions." Jinora said.

"It's not like I have any. And Asami's straight! So telling her wouldn't do much to make me feel better." Korra said, crossing her arms.

"No, but she is your friend." Jinora said. "And if she really cares about you, she'll accept you."

Korra smiled. "Sometimes I'm glad I talk to you. You can give great advice."

"I know." Jinora said smugly.

...

Author's Note: Arrrgh, filler chapters are assholes aren't they? They're short, they're boring, and they make people mad. I'm sorry it was so short, the next chapter will be longer!

Thanks for reading!


	10. Denial & Plans

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which no ones wants to admit the truth.

Author's Note: If you've watched Hercules, then you'll hopefully remember Meg's song I Won't Say (I'm In Love). That helped inspire this chapter xD. That's my favorite song out of all the Disney songs (yes, including Frozen). And thanks for the forgiveness of a short chapter last time :)

...

"Mako, we need to talk." Asami said as she walked up to him in the hallway. "Right now."

"About what?" Mako asked, closing his locker.

"I want you to tell me what's going on with Korra." Asami said.

Mako panicked for a second, clearing his throat. "What, uh, what do you want to know?"

"Tell me why Korra is staying away from me." Asami said.

"Staying away from you?" Mako laughed nervously. "I have no idea what you're taking about."

"Yes, you do. And I know you do." Asami said.

"Look, Asami, I-" Mako began, but Asami cut him off.

"I don't want to hear any of your bullshit." Asami said. She stepped closer, backing him into the lockers. "I know you're helping her keep away from me. You and Bolin. I want to know why."

"It's not really my place to tell you." Mako said.

"But it is your place to help her avoid me, right?" I sounded way too accusing, but I didn't care.

"Look, I'm just helping Korra because I care about her." Mako snapped.

I narrowed my eyes, coming to the only conclusion my mind could conceive in the heat of the moment. "You're in love with her, aren't you?"

"What, no!" Mako said. He stood up straight, staring me down. "I don't know what your problem is, Asami, but I want no part of it. I can't tell you what's going on with Korra."

He pushed past me and left me standing by his locker, more confused and hurt that I had intended to become.

...

"What do you mean she came to you?!" Korra exclaimed when Mako told her later.

"She demanded that I tell her why you aren't talking to her anymore." he said. "Have you ever seen 'Angry Asami'? Not very appealing."

"What did you say?" Korra asked.

"I told her I couldn't tell her." Mako said. "She wasn't very happy about it, either. She even accused me of even being in love with you."

Korra paused and laughed. "With you? Okay, now she's overstepping boundaries."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Mako said.

"Nothing." Korra said, stifling her laughter.

Mako placed a hand on her shoulder. "Look, Korra, you know, I know, and everyone else involved knows that it would be better for all of us if you just tell Asami and get it over with."

"No way." Korra said, shrugging out from under his hand.

"Why are you so stubborn?" Mako asked. "Do you have any idea what you're doing to her?"

Korra closed her eyes, but shook her head. "I can't-"

"Stop with that. You know what you're doing isn't fair to her." Mako said. "I can respect that your trying to convince yourself that you're happy with Kuvira, but you know full well it's just a lie." He stepped in front of Korra. "You're in love with Asami. You still want her. Just accept it."

Korra looked up at him, staring him dead in the eyes, before speaking. "No, I'm not. Not anymore."

...

It was annoying. She thought, of all people, Mako would stay on her side. She knew it wasn't fair to him, or anyone that knew. She knew that. But Korra couldn't help but wonder if he'd forgotten how much pain she went through because of Asami. Two years of listening to Asami go on about the dates she'd been on, or the cute guys she saw on her way to work. Niko just sent her over the edge.

Do you have any idea what you're doing to her?

Of course she knew. She saw it, even though she didn't know out was her fault at first. She felt guilty all the time. She couldn't begin to explain just how many times she's wanted to go up to Asami and apologize. She just can't do it.

"What are you so afraid of?" she asked herself in the mirror. "It's only Asami, she'll understand."

Or she wouldn't.

Either way, Korra wasn't interested in telling Asami anything. She'd prefer to just let those feelings die out into nothingness before she said anything. Maybe it would be better that way. Like she said before, it's not like she had a chance with her anyway.

...

"Asami, I just need you to talk to me." Niko said. "You've been depressed and it's worrying me out of my mind."

Asami bit her lip. They were supposed to be out on a date, and she didn't want to ruin that. She'd been trying to keep her happy face on for as long as she could. She wasn't accomplishing much, but it was nice to imagine that she was. Niko took her hand from across the table.

"At least tell me one thing." he said, his voice soft and pleading. "Are you in love with Korra?"

"No." The word didn't feel right on her tongue. It was out of place.

"I know she's been on your mind." Niko said.

"That doesn't mean I'm in love with her." Asami said, her tone deadpanned.

Niko sighed and squeezed her hands reassuringly. "I'm not going to force you to realize your feelings if you don't want to." he said. "But I can't help but think I'm in the way."

"You're not, I promise." Asami said, finally looking at him.

"I know you talked to Kuvira, too." Niko said.

"How?" Asami said.

"I saw it." Niko answered. "And I heard most of it. She said something about you being jealous of her."

"It's not true." Asami said. "What reason would I have to be jealous of her?"

"Because she has Korra, and you don't." Niko said.

Asami let the words sink in. He couldn't of been right... To be in love with Korra... If that were true, she would've known from the start. Right?

"Asami, if you're not happy, tell me. I want nothing more than for you to be happy, even if that means leaving me for Korra." Niko said.

"I don't want to leave you." Asami said, again feeling like the words just didn't fit.

Niko sighed. "Okay." was all he said.

...

He was probably out of line for this, but it still needed to be done. If it was for Asami, he'd do it. Niko was waiting outside the school the next day, waiting for two certain people. He knew that Bolin and Mako would know Asami better than anyone. Of course, he couldn't gone to Korra but he wouldn't of gotten the results he was in search of.

He didn't have to wait long either. Mako and Bolin emerged from the school doors, talking to each other. Niko cleared his throat to get their attention. "Hey, guys."

"Oh, hey, Niko." Bolin said. "Asami should be out in a few-"

"No, that's not why I'm here." Niko said.

"Then why are you here?" Mako asked.

"You guys know Asami and Korra better than me. You know how to get through to them." Niko said. "And I have a feeling that Asami is in love with Korra, she just doesn't know how to address it."

"How do you know?" Bolin said.

"I can see it when she looks at her. I think she just needs a little shove." Niko said.

"And you want our help." Mako stated, smirking a little.

"If you wouldn't mind." Niko said.

"Hold on, hold on." Bolin said, stepping up. "You're playing matchmaker for your girlfriend? Who does that?"

"I want Asami to be happy." Niko said. "And she's not happy with me. I know you know that Korra loves Asami." Mako and Bolin looked at each other. "Are you in?"

"What about Kuvira?" Mako asked.

"We can worry about her later." Niko said. "Are you in or not?"

Mako and Bolin glanced at each other again and smiled. "Yeah, we're in."

...

Author's Note: It feels kind of halfassed, but I lost my writing mojo for a bit and tried to pick it back up at the end.

Thanks for reading!


	11. Depression & Doubts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which no one knows what's going on but the boys.

...

If Mako and Bolin knew how to do one thing, it was how to keep secrets away from Korra and Asami. The first step to getting them together, according to Niko, was to figure out how to first get them in the same room or at least in the same place. Not alone, of course. Who knows what would happen between them if they were alone. It had to be a casual setting, something that everyone could be comfortable in. And it had to have a little crowd.

"Kind of like a party." Bolin said, writing down their plans on paper.

"Yes, exactly." Niko said.

"How are we supposed to pull that off?" Mako asked. "None of us have a big enough house to throw a party."

"It doesn't have to be in a house." Niko said, thinking. "Beach party."

"Which would be best because...?" Bolin said.

"Who doesn't love beach parties?" Niko said.

"I can see your point, but how do we get them together?" Mako asked.

"It can't be forced." Niko replied, starting to pace back and forth. "It has to feel natural. Like it was meant to happen, but not really." He looked at the brothers. "Am I making sense here?"

"I guess." Bolin said. He scrawled out more notes on the paper.

"We also can't ignore the fact that Korra is going to bring Kuvira." Niko said.

"What are you going to do about her?" Mako said.

"If we can lure Kuvira away long enough for Asami to at least get close to Korra, we got them." Niko said. "Even if it doesn't happen right away, we are at least getting somewhere."

"So you do have a plan to get Kuvira out of the way." Mako replied.

"Right now, it's just a work in progress." Niko said. "But it's coming along."

"Who's gonna do the party invites?" Bolin said.

"I think Mako can handle that." Niko answered.

"Yeah, I can do that." Mako said, smiling.

"I'll invite Asami, though." Niko said. One of you can invite Korra. Bolin, I'm sure you can get the party supplies."

"Heck yeah!" Bolin said.

"And I can bring the food." Niko said.

"When is this all going down?" Mako asked.

Niko looked at the calender, contemplating the best date. It was Thursday. "Saturday."

"Alright!" Bolin exclaimed. "Operation Match-Maker is underway!"

Niko laughed while Mako just gave him a look.

"Come on." Niko said. "We got a party to plan."

...

Korra grunted in frustration and set her saxophone down, her eyebrows twitching in aggravation. She had had enough of everything she did pissing her off. She hadn't seen Mako or Bolin at school, so she was left to avoid Asami by herself. Which was surprisingly easy, considering that Asami barely showed her face all day. She was in school, Korra was sure of that because she saw her. But she wasn't herself.

"Opal?" Korra had whispered to her friend earlier that day in class.

"Hmm?" Opal hummed, not looking up from her paper.

"What so you think is up with Asami?" Korra asked.

Opal glanced back at aforementioned girl, who was staring blankly into space. She shrugged and turned back to her work. "I don't know. Maybe it's that time of the month."

Korra nodded absently in agreement, but something told her that wasn't the problem. Her worry over her former crush slammed into her like a bus. It was nagging at her constantly, telling her she needed to talk to her. Every time, the answer was always the same, deadpanned no.

Why are you being so pathetic? she asked herself. You have Kuvira now... Shouldn't it be easier..?

Thinking of Kuvira brought Korra into a slightly better mood and she realized she didn't text or call her yet. Kuvira was home sick, so she wasn't in school either. Korra decided that calling and talking to Kuvira would make her feel a lot better. She dug her phone out of her pocket and brought up Kuvira's number, pressing the call button.

The other line rang once, twice, three times before Kuvira finally picked up.

"Hello?" a stuffy voice said. Korra giggled, smiling

"Hey." she said.

"Hey, babe." Kuvira said, her voice brightening quickly. "Nice of you to finally call me."

Korra really laughed that time. "I'm sorry. I was working on my sax. How are you feeling?"

"A little better." Kuvira said. "Though, I'd feel a lot better if I could've seen you today."

"I'd come over if it wasn't so late." Korra said, looking outside her window. It was dark. "I really missed you in school, it wasn't the same."

"I know, I missed you too." Kuvira said, a smile apparent in her tone.

"I'll come by tomorrow, though." Korra said. "I'll bring over a couple of movies and some snacks after school. A stay at home date."

"Sounds great." Kuvira replied.

"Get some rest, I'll see you then." Korra said. "I love you." Why don't the words feel right?

"I love you, too." Kuvira said. They don't even sound right coming from her...

Kuvira clicked off and Korra sighed, laying back on her bed. She clenched her phone in her hand. She could've snapped it in half if she wanted to. It didn't make sense. She should've been able to tell Kuvira she loved her and not second guess it. She liked Kuvira... She...liked... Korra groaned loudly and covered her face with her arm.

'Just sleep it off, Korra... It'll be better in the morning...'

...

Asami glared at her phone as if she could make it burst into flames at will. That would've been all to easy, though. It would've been too relaxing, too good to be true, for that to happen. Maybe then all this strain on her heart would finally lift... Ha, what a wish! Was it wrong to want to be able to force someone to call or text you? Depending on the reason?

'What are you even thinking of?' Asami scolded herself.

Asami wanted more than anything to talk to Korra. In fact, she'd literally give anything to do so. Without a doubt, a second thought. So why was she hesitating now to send a simple text, her hands shaking and her eyes blurry? She wiped her eyes with the back of her hand and threw her phone down in aggravation. It mocked her from the edge of the bed, like it was making fun of her cowardice.

Asami hated how Korra associated with everyone else. She knew she was asking about her. She saw it in class when Korra whispered to Opal and Opal looked back at her. Why couldn't Korra just talk to her herself? That would make everything ten times easier. It's not like anyone was helping anyway. Not even Niko, her own boyfriend seemed to be on her side anymore. He called her out on being in love with Korra!

Which she wasn't...

And yet, it all made sense when she fit it together in her mind. Then there was denial to tear it apart. If she really was in love with Korra, would that explain why she was being such a baby about contacting her, why she was so depressed about Korra pushing her away? Yes. It would. So why couldn't she just accept it?

Her phone buzzed with Niko's ringtone, snapping Asami out of her thoughts. She grabbed her phone hurriedly and answered it.

"Hey." she said, struggling to keep her voice even.

"Hey, baby." Niko said. "I have a question for you."

"What is it?" Asami asked.

"Would you be okay with attending a party that me, Mako and Bolin are throwing?" Niko said.

"Uh, sure." Asami replied. "But why are you guys throwing a party?"

"For the heck of it." Niko laughed. "We're actually getting along really well and Mako asked me to help him plan a party."

"I'm glad you guys are getting along." Asami said, smiling.

"So will you come?" Niko said.

Will Korra be there..? She shook her head to get rid of the thought. Why did she need to think that Korra was going to be everywhere?

"Of course." Asami said.

"Great! It's gonna be on Saturday, at the beach. I'll pick you up, as usual." Niko said. "And I'll see you tomorrow."

"Okay." Asami said.

"I love you." Niko said.

"I love you, too."

The line went silent and Asami sighed, putting her hands in her lap and staring at her phone. Usually, when she was upset like this, she put on a song to help her forget whatever was bothering her. Right now, not much seemed like a bad idea. She opened up her Pandora and scrolled through some songs. By her luck, her thumb didn't scroll up soon enough and played the first song it touched. Asami almost didn't realize exactly what song was playing until it got to the chorus.

~You're gone and I gotta stay high

All the time to keep you off my mind

High, all the time to keep you off my mind

Spend my days locked in a haze, tryna forget you babe

I fall back down, gotta stay high

All my life to forget I'm missing you~

Asami cut the song off, her heart starting to race at the realization of the lyrics. That wasn't what she needed to hear at the moment. She pressed the next button, hoping for a better song. The next one was one she'd never heard before. And, like before, the chorus got her.

~I wish you would come back

Wish I never hung up the phone like I did

I wish you know that I'll never forget you as long as I live

And I wish you were right here, right now

It's all good, I wish you would

I wish we could go back and remember what we were fighting for

And I wish you know that I miss you too much to be mad anymore

And I wish you were right here, right now

It's all good, I wish you would~

She wasn't much for Taylor Swift anyway. She figured she'd try one more time to find a song that didn't make her think of Korra. She pressed the next button again.

~How long will I love you?

As long as stars are above you, and longer if I can

How long will I need you?

As long as the seasons need to follow their plan~

Asami shut the music off completely and set her phone down. It wasn't worth the fight anymore. The only way Asami was going to get away from thinking of Korra was to sleep...and maybe not even then. She grabbed her blankets and laid back onto her bed, turning over onto her side. She stared at the floor.

'Just sleep it off, Asami... It'll be better in the morning...'

...

Songs:

Habits (Stay High) - Tove Lo

I Wish You Would - Taylor Swift

How Long Will I Love You - Ellie Goulding

Thanks for reading!


	12. Change of Plans

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which someone learns of their plans and they aren't as they seem.

Author's Note: I make no apologies for what is to come in this chapter.

A HUGE majority of the content in this chapter (and a fair share of everything to follow afterwards) comes from lord moon44 on fanfiction.net so I thank him very much for his material!

Also, warning: this chapter will contain minor content and mild violence.

...

Things were almost ready. The invites had been sent out and so far they had more than enough people. Bolin had been the one to call and invite Korra to the party, and, with a little reluctance, she agreed to go. Everything was falling into place just the like they wanted it to. If the party went down the way it was meant to, everyone would finally be happy. The next day after school, Niko, Mako, and Bolin met up. They were standing right outside, by the stairs.

"Are we sure that everything is in place?" Mako asked.

"Totally." Niko said. "We just need to make sure that Korra and Asami definitely show up. We can't let them back out." He looked around. "I know this diner we can go to to finish our planning, if you guys want to go. Also, it's much safer than around the school."

"I'm always up for some food." Bolin said, smiling.

"Yeah, sounds cool." Mako said.

"Awesome, let's go." Niko said.

They headed up the sidewalk, unbeknownst to them that they were being followed...

~time skip~

It wasn't that long of a walk, it was actually only a few blocks away. They reached the diner and, just as they were about to enter it, someone cleared their throat behind them.

"Sup?" came a familiar, uninterested voice.

The three boys looked behind them and jumped in surprise. The person standing behind them...was Kuvira. She had her hand shoved in her pockets, the other one holding a brown paper bag, and an eyebrow raised. The three of them glanced at each other, then back at Kuvira. She had a straight face, but her eyes had those of a predator ready to mangle their prey when she looked at them one by one.

"Oh, *ahem* h-hey, Kuvira..." Bolin said nervously, raising his hand to wave, but it freezes from his nerves. "What, uh, what brings you to this diner?"

"Oh, nothing important." Kuvira said. "Just wanted to ask you guys something, maybe talk for a bit."

"About what?" Niko asked.

"I was hoping maybe we could go to my house where there's a bit more...privacy." Kuvira said.

"Sorry, Kuvira." Mako said, taking a step forward. "We can't. We kind of have some homework that we need to get done and-"

"Well, I am a tutor." Kuvira said. "I can help you." She reached forward and patted Mako on the shoulder calmly, but the glare she gave him was that of a lion about to snap its dinner's neck. Mako shrunk back immediately.

"F-fine, we'll follow." he said quietly.

Kuvira smiled pleasantly and turned around army-style. "Good."

...

Korra slouched in her chair in front of her computer, her head throbbing due to her thoughts. Her aggravation was growing rapidly by the second. Kuvira and Asami had been refusing to leave her thoughts recently, and Korra could've sworn she was spiraling for an emotional breakdown because of them. She couldn't help but to a comparison of the two, tallying up the pros and con's.

Asami has always been a wonderful friend... I've known her a long time. She's beautiful, kind, always willing to talk...

"But never saw me, even now, as anything else... but a friend!" With a sudden rush of anger, Korra flung her notebook onto the floor and covered her face.

Kuvira is like Asami bookwise, I guess... She's really cool, but sometimes it's so hard to tell what she's feeling... She always wears a poker face...

"But I...I know how she feels about me..." she muttered to herself. "She trusts me...she kissed me!"

She saw me -sees me- as more than a friend. I care about her... I-I want...

Korra groaned loudly through her teeth and threw herself onto her bed, startling Naga who was asleep next to it. Naga barked and Korra covered her head with her pillow as her mind continued to to spin with thoughts of Kuvira, less gentle ones of Asami not too far behind.

...

Almost twenty minutes later, Kuvira, Niko, Mako and Bolin reached Kuvira's home. It was somewhat rundown, decomposed almost. The guys looked at each other, confused, as they followed Kuvira up the steps and to the door. Kuvira put her key into the keyhole and Bolin cleared his throat.

"Uh, hey, Kuvira." he said cautiously, knowing he was treading into hazardous waters. "I know it's not really my place to say anything, but, uh, I thought you lived with-"

Kuvira cut him off mid-sentence, barely looking over her shoulder as she opened the door. "I do love with her, but I also visit my father sometimes to help him with things he needs. In exchange, I get a quiet place to do my homework, or" -she fully looked at them then, smiling- "have a nice chat with people like you."

Bolin swallowed and the three of them followed Kuvira into the house. The place smelled horrible, and it made all of their stomachs flip. It reeked of must, alcohol, and dirty laundry. Bolin gagged and tried to hold his breath and Mako's eyes started to water. Niko held his stomach tightly.

"Father, I got your favorite!" Kuvira called out, holding up the bag.

Thuds of heavy footsteps came from the back of the house and a big man came into the doorway. He was a mess. He was sporting a bald spot in the middle of his head with graying hair coming around. He had a beard that was as long as his neck, ripped jeans that barely fit him, and a white T-shirt with unidentifiable stains on the front. His eyes locked on Kuvira and he smiled.

"Oh, baby girl," His voice rumbled and he coughed. "You made it home with them goods, right?"

He reached his arms out towards Kuvira as if he were going to hug her and Kuvira put her hands up, holding him back by his shoulders. Her expression was blank as she handed him the bag that was in her hand. "Just take your kill drink." she muttered, shoving it into his hands. "I'll be upstairs of you need me."

As she started to walk past him her father looked at the guys, his eyebrows raising in interest. He laughed. "Looks like you finally got over your gay mojo after all these years." he said, making Kuvira freeze in her steps. "You went out with that one boy, can't remember his name. But now I can finally get some grandkids right, hahaha-"

He didn't get to finish his sentence. Kuvira's fist socked him in his gut, glaring at him as he stumbled back while holding his bottle out of harm's way.

"I didn't bring these guys to fuck them." Kuvira's voice was near a growl. Her eyes flared with hatred. "I'm still proudly bisexual and you will respect that." She straightened herself up. "I brought them here to ensure that it stays that way, you pathetic old man!"

Mako, Bolin and Niko exchanged looks then looked back at Kuvira, astonished that she had done that in front of them. Sure, he was pathetic but did he really deserve to be punched in the gut?

"Uh, don't you think that's going a little over the top?" Niko asked.

Kuvira looked back at them. "No, because we're all friends here." She walked around her father without giving him a second glance. "Now come on. We have homework to talk about."

The boys stepped around the fallen man and followed Kuvira to the back of the house. Kuvira opened a door to a bedroom with pink walls with fitting gray shading and a bright ceiling light. On her dressers were pictures of her family, apparently from way before. A much happier time. There was a study table with papers in a messy pile on top of it. The whole room smelled of cherry air fresheners. Peace signs decorated the walls. Kuvira nodded to one particular wall that had a picture of Korra and Asami on it, a red 'x' through Asami's face.

"Why are you showing us this?" Mako asked. "Why are we here exactly?"

"I know what you guys are planning." Kuvira said slowly. "I heard you when you first came up with it. I was just about to come outside when I heard Niko say that he wanted to get Asami and Korra together." Her jaw set behind her lips and she pulled her wallet out of her pocket, taking out a small picture and handing it to Bolin. The other two leaned in to get a look. It was picture of Korra and Kuvira, kissing and smiling. "Do you see how happy she is?"

"Look, Kuvira, this is nice but don't you think-" Niko began before Kuvira cut him off.

"It is nice, isn't it, that after four fucking years I don't have to wait anymore. From the moment I laid eyes on her." Kuvira said, glaring at Mako. "Three years after you and Korra dated, two years after Korra realized she was after Asami. For years I've waited for this moment that Asami would be so blind to not realize that her ticket to happiness would be Korra. She's mine and I refuse to give that up."

Kuvira pulled up her sleeve, revealing a long red string. "Do you see this string?" The boys nodded. "This is a red string that I use to keep my promise that I will always love Korra, from a distance or up close, and then I hear you three want to destroy that!" Bolin opened his mouth to say something, but Kuvira's death glare made it snap shut. "No, little man, you're on my time now! Korra has finally found me faithful, honest and caring. I finally get to go on dates with her, I finally get to kiss her and call her mine. I appreciate her and she appreciates me.

"When I walked into that classroom and saw who I was going to be tutoring, I couldn't believe my eyes, as it was Korra, whom I fondly fell in love with, and after hearing that Asami had lost her chance with her did you think I was just going to sit back and let her suffer? Fuck no!" A cold chill passed down Niko's spine, caused by the fear of hearing Kuvira speak so frighteningly honest.

"Korra has suffered as she waited for her lover Asami to take her, but she was too blind with all that hair of hers and make up to realize what she had..." Kuvira clenched her fist. "And now she wants to battle me for Korra... She is not a trophy, she is not someone that deserves to be taken advantage of. And then I hear that you two want to set up some bullshit party as to...get them together and throw me to the sidelines like I don't matter..." Her glare swept along all of them. "I should beat you all down in a pool of blood."

Niko stared at her while Bolin and Mako took defensive stances immediately, ready for anything. Kuvira took a deep breath, her expression calming. "There's no need for that. I don't plan on fighting you. That would only cause bad blood with Korra."

"What are you saying then?" Niko asked.

"All I'm saying is to mind your own business." Kuvira said. "Forget the party and everything else and leave me and Korra alone. Do nothing but what you were doing before. Are we clear?"

Niko, Mako and Bolin glanced at each other, their jaws all clenching as their eyes spoke in silent conversation. They nodded after a brief moment.

"Fine." Niko said. "You can have your happy ending. We'll leave it alone."

Kuvira smiled. "I'm glad we could reach an agreement without any...physical interaction." she said. "I'll walk you guys out."

Kuvira did as she said and showed them to the door. Her father wasn't on the floor anymore. They could hear his coughing coming from a room in the front of the house. Kuvira opened the door and the guys walked out.

"I'll see you guys in school." she said to Mako and Bolin before closing the door.

Drop by drop it was starting to rain. Mako gritted his teeth in aggravation. "This isn't fair!" he said as he stepped down off the porch.

"I know." Bolin said. "I don't like it either." They both looked to Niko, who seemed deep in thought. "What do you want to do now?"

"I need to do something." Niko said. "I'll see you guys later."

"Uh, okay..." Mako said.

Niko started up the street and the brothers looked at each other. Bolin shrugged and they walked the opposite way up the sidewalk to go home.

Niko wasn't go to let go so easily, though. It wasn't in his plan. He was determined to make this work, one way or another. He wouldn't break that promise to himself, and he wouldn't break it because of her. So, he was on route to the only person needed to fulfill that promise. Asami.

...

Author's Note: I'm actually glad this is my only story so far that portrays Kuvira as a bad guy.

Thanks for reading!


	13. Bad Dreams & Realization

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which someone finally realizes their feelings.

...

~Dream ~

It was cloudy outside, threatening to rain on her as she stood on the sidewalk. She had her head down and her hands were shoved deep in her pockets. She wasn't doing anything but standing there. It was cold, but she didn't have a jacket. The only thing she noticed was how alone she felt.

A drop of rain hit her head and she looked up, closing her eyes as another drop hit her on her forehead. She grimaced and put her head down again as the rain gradually picked up. Still, she stood there. She didn't know what exactly she was waiting for until she felt another's presence and a shadow cast over her, blocking the rain. She looked up in surprise, only to be met with familiar green eyes and a warm smile.

"Need a friend?" her voice said, ringing gently in her ears like it used to.

To her own amazement, she found herself smiling back. "If you're offering." she said jokingly, making the other laugh.

She stepped closer with the umbrella, close enough to brush her shoulder against hers. A shiver passed down the shorter girl's spine and she bit her lip. She felt a hand ease its way into hers and their fingers intertwined. In that second, something changed. Everything felt...wrong.

"Korra..." her voice whispered, oddly haunting.

She pulled her hand away at an instant, stepping back. She met those green eyes again, gritting her teeth. "No..." she said, her tone strained.

"No what?" she asked, trying to step closer.

Korra moved back again, out from under the umbrella and back into the pouring rain. "I'm not...I'm not going through this again..."

"But I love you, Korra..."

Korra clenched her hands into fists, her eyes brimming with tears. "No you don't...you never did, Asami!"

"I always have..." Asami said. Her voice became distant.

"I loved you first!" she cried, her voice raising unintentionally. She didn't bother to fight the tears that now streamed down her face. They blended in with the rainwater hitting her cheeks. "I did... And you ignored me..."

A look of sadness fell upon Asami's face and Korra forced herself to turn away. Her feet gave way to running. She didn't know where she was going, but she'd run. She'd run, until- ~

Korra shot straight up in her bed, gasping for air and sweating profusely. Her heart became a jackhammer in her chest and her hair stuck to her forehead. Her vision was dazed for a few seconds and she found herself staring at her blankets.

When did she fall asleep? How long had she been asleep? She never checked the time, but it was almost dark outside. It had to of been a while. Using her hand, she swept back the stray hair clinging to her damp forehead and closed her eyes, trying to ease her heart and slow her breathing. Naga whined from the foot of her bed and inched forward, pressing her nose to Korra's hand.

"It's okay, girl..." Korra said quietly, scratching Naga behind her ear. "Just a bad dream..."

That's all she wanted to think of it as. A dream. Nothing more. She wanted to give it as little thought as possible and hope that the dream would just go away on its own. All the heartbreaking parts that came with it.

Yes, she knew that, given time, most of the dream would eventually fade away from memory. She wouldn't mind either.

Even if Asami's eyes never left.

...

Asami put her face in her hands and suppressed a groan. She was sitting at the desk in her father's garage, trying to focus on her homework to no avail. It was infuriating. Not meaning to brag, but being one of the smartest students in most of her classes should've counted for something at the moment. The rain pattering against the roof didn't seem to be doing any favors either.

"Ugh, why can't I just finish this?" she moaned unhappily, sitting back in her chair and staring at the ceiling. She tried to focus on getting her mind straight. 'I can't seem to focus on anything...'

Things had been so much easier when she was happy, when things weren't so confusing and all out of place. When her and Korra were still on best friend terms...

'I was so much happier a month ago.' Asami thought to herself. 'If Korra had only been supportive of me and Niko like the type of friend I expected she would be... I shouldn't be feeling guilty about showing off my boyfriend. It's not my fault I fell in love and she didn't...'

"Still," she said, voicing her thoughts aloud. "That doesn't change the fact that I thought Mako of all people would've been on the defensive. He was acting more like a best friend than Korra was...somewhat. It's not like she was really jealous..." She face palmed herself and sighed. "Great, now I'm talking to myself."

Besides, it wasn't like Korra spoke to her about it directly. That would've made this whole situation ten times easier.

Her cell phone rang, interrupting her rant and startling her. She reached into her pocket and pulled it out. Niko was calling her. She answered it and put the phone to her ear, smiling. "Hey." she said.

"Hey, babe." Niko said, his voice shaking. Asami heard him take a deep breath.

"Why do you sound cold?" she asked.

"I'm outside in the rain." Niko said, chuckling. He'd changed his mind last minute to go to Asami's house personally, realizing that he would've been drenched by the time he made it. "I'm standing outside my house, actually."

Asami laughed. "So go inside."

"I will in a second, I just need to talk to you." Niko said. "Well, more like ask you a question."

"Go ahead." Asami replied, then added teasingly, "Better not be anything dirty, we've only been together for two months."

Niko laughed a little. "It's completely appropriate, I love you too much to ask something like that." He went quiet for a minute before speaking up again. "Speaking of love, that's actually what I want to ask you about. What is love to you?"

Asami, taken back by the question, stuttered for a second, trying to come up with an answer. "Where is this coming from? What...what do you mean?"

"What does it mean to you when you love someone?" Niko clarified.

"Er, um, well..." Asami bit her lip, raking her brain to figure out exactly what she thought of love. "I guess I'd say it's what we have... When two people seem compatible enough to be together."

"You're sort of right there, 'Sami." Niko said, a small smile evident in his voice though he sighed. "Love is something you cherish with someone, someone that you trust enough with your heart... Boy or girl."

Asami made a face, thoroughly confused at that point. "I...I don't understand. You're not making any sense, Niko." Her voice trembled slightly.

"It's alright, not everyone does." Niko said. "But some do understand, eventually. Sometimes it ends up being too late, and I don't want that to happen to you."

"Happen to..." Asami echoed. "Why are you talking like I don't know what love is?"

The phone connection broke for a second and all she could hear was crackling static. When it cleared up, Niko spoke.

"I know you don't love me...not in that sense anymore, at least, but-" Niko was cut off by Asami, who's voice had rose an octave higher than she'd meant.

"I do love you, Niko!" she said, her hand tightening on her phone to repress her overflowing anger. "I love you and no one else! If I didn't, I wouldn't be with you!"

Niko sighed heavily. "I think some part of you knows that's no longer the truth."

Asami opened her mouth to argue again, but it snapped shut quickly. She had nothing to say. Her thoughts came flooding in, everything that had happened in the past month. They were all centered around Korra. When she'd saved her from Wu and Hisoka, the sadness she felt when Korra turned her down to go to the movies, when Korra walked out of the restaurant and she went after her... Everything had finally come in full circle. It had been in her face the entire time.

Kuvira had been right.

Asami was jealous of her.

She did want Korra.

She...loved her.

"Oh spirits..." Asami muttered, sitting back in her chair. "I...I'm such an idiot..."

"No, you're not." Niko said.

"Niko, I'm so sorry..." Asami began, her voice cracking with emotion. "I can't...I didn't mean to..."

Niko shushed her. "It's okay."

"I don't know what to say, though." Asami said. "I can't even begin to process this..."

"It's nothing to worry about now." Niko said. "Right now, you need to focus on what you're going to do tomorrow to get Korra back."

"Back?" Asami said. "What happens tomorrow?"

"Kuvira isn't planning on giving Korra up so easily, especially after waiting so long." Niko said. "She doesn't want to see Korra hurt over you again. She's going to make sure that whatever love Korra has left for you is destroyed."

"You...you mean Korra loves...er...loved me?" Asami asked.

"Yeah." Niko said, his voice low.

"Oh, god." Asami murmured. Her head was swimming. "How long? How long has Korra...loved me?"

"From what Bolin told me, two years." Niko said.

Asami cursed herself. She hated herself for being so blind, despite the fact that Korra never came forward and confessed. But blame her? Had the roles of been reversed, Asami probably would have been just as nervous.

"Asami?" Niko said, bringing her back to reality.

"What do I do?" Asami said suddenly. "She's going to avoid me tomorrow."

"No, she won't." Niko said. "I have a plan for that. I'm going to ask Bolin and Mako are going to sneak into your gym class and make a clear path for you to Korra. If necessary, I'll have them recruit a few others to help you."

"Thank you so much." she said.

"No need to thank me." Niko said.

"And I'm sorry." Asami apologized again. "I didn't mean to hurt you like this..."

"No, I'm proud of you Asami." Niko said. "Your happiness is all I wanted." She heard shuffling on his side of the phone. "I'll see you tomorrow morning to help you get ready."

"Okay." Asami said, smiling.

"Bye, Asami." Niko said.

Just before he could hang up, Asami stopped him. "Niko, wait!" she said quickly.

"Yes?" Niko said.

Asami bit her lip and sucked in a breath. She made a last attempt at a joke, wanting to lighten the mood while she still had the chance. She forced a smile on her shaking lips. "I...use to love you."

Even though he knew she couldn't see it, Niko smiled. He chuckled once and sighed.

"I used to love you, too."

...


	14. Late Night Serenade

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Kuvira goes to Korra's house in the middle of the night.

...

Kuvira made it home late, at least around nine o'clock. She was soaked from the rain and shivering as she opened the door and stepped inside. "I'm home!" she announced.

She heard footsteps on the stairs and looked up to see her guardian, Lin Beifong, coming down. When she reached the bottom of the stairs she looked at Kuvira and crossed her arms. "Ah, Kuvira, finally making it home I see."

Kuvira made no attempt to show any emotion as she just took what she could get. "Sorry I'm late, I had something to do. I'll be in my room if you need me." she said, then started heading for the stairs. As she walked by her, Lin turned around.

"Hey, you should at least get something to eat." she said.

"I'm not very hungry right now, I'll eat later." Kuvira said.

Lin cocked her head to the side and made a face. "You know you should be grateful. I took you in after your incident with your family, and all my teaching that I bestow upon you since you will be the new Chief of Police when I retire and you graduate from high school!"

Kuvira turned all the way around and faced her with still no recognizable change in her facial expression. "Having a rough day I see." Lin still had her arms crossed and made perfect eye contact. "And I am honored to take your place as Chief of Police of this city…but isn't that because you could never have a family of your own Beifong?"

Lin was at the boiling point of her anger with how rudely she was being spoken to. "What is your problem, young lady? I take you into my home, I teach you all of my skills, I put clothes on your back, I give you a good education system, and all the advice in the world to get a boy to like your stiff-neck self and you want to talk back to me like I'm some friend down the street!"

Kuvira eyes sharpened at the last comment, barely keeping her cool. It upset her greatly that Lin still wouldn't bother to acknowledge her relationship for Korra. "And, once again, I appreciate all the things you have done for me." she said, softening her attitude just a bit. "I respect you as my teacher, my mentor, my word of wisdom. But right now, I just need some space at the moment. It might sound difficult to hear, but respect that I'm seventeen years old and still need time to figure things out for myself. You repeating all the things you done for me til' now won't change that at the slightest."

Lin relaxed a little bit and looked to the side, brushing it off. "Do whatever you want. Just make sure you do your training, and find yourself a boyfriend while you're at it."

Kuvira rolled her eyes and turned back to the stairs, heading up to her room. When she finally made it to her room, she couldn't think of anything but her feelings toward Korra. As she lie down on her bed, dropping her bags, her thoughts clouded over with the fear of Asami taking Korra from her. It wasn't like she had much to worry about, but there was still that nagging feeling in the back of her mind that kept her wary. She wasn't always an emotionless outcast. She showed her feelings around people she cared about, those that wouldn't use them against her or to their own advantage. Korra was one of those people, Asami and her friends were not.

'I have waited four years for this moment, I must keep myself in her heart no matter what it takes...'

She paused in her thoughts as she forced her face into her pillow. "But I won't mess up like a fool. Not like Asami did." she muttered into it.

Kuvira got up from her bed and opened her closet, shifting her belongings aside until she came across what she was looking for. She got out her guitar. She sat back onto her bed, placing it in her lap and stared at it. She ran her fingers along the strings. "It's been a while since I played with this but" -she played a few notes and smiled to herself- "still got it."

Kuvira stood from her bed, laying the guitar down on it, and went to her dressers to grab a different outfit. She headed to the bathroom.

After a quick shower, she changed into a plain white long-sleeve shirt with a dark brown leather jacket and a pair of blue jeans. Kuvira grabbed her guitar and power walked down the stairs, starting for the front door, until Lin came up behind her and grabbed her by the wrist. "Where are you going this time of the night, you should be doing your homework."

Kuvira sighed and pulled her arm from Lin distastefully, as she wasn't in the mood to hear what she has to say. "I have something important to do." she said without looking at her. Not even a second later, Kuvira left with an umbrella and shut the door behind her. Lin made a face, putting her hand out as if to question what just happened, then crossed her arms.

"What is so important that she needs to do it now?" she said to herself as she went back to her room.

...

Bolin and Mako made it back to their apartment drenched from the rain. Bolin was the first to dry off and change into his pajamas. Mako was in the bathroom while Bolin sat on his bed with his school book and notebook, a pencil between his fingers.

"So, Bolin, you think we should really help Kuvira?" Mako asked as he toweled his hair dry in the mirror.

"Well," Bolin began thoughtfully. "Kuvira was a little scary at first, but her intentions seem…innocent. She does sound as if she loves Korra and she could have the potential to at least tolerate Asami if she stayed out of the way, no matter how much of a friend she is to us." Bolin looked up at the doorway to the bathroom. "Asami never realized until now, and barely now, about her feelings towards Korra."

Mako was taken back by Bolin's mature thinking and leaned back to look out at him. "Little brother, it sounds as if you really thought this through." he said in a teasing manor.

Bolin looked down for a second before looking back at his older brother. "Yeah, well, I'm still lingering on if what we are about to is really the right thing or not."

Mako shut off the light in the bathroom and entered their bedroom, sitting down beside Bolin on his bed, and put an arm on his right shoulder with a confident squeeze. "It's okay, bro. That's why we have each other to think these things over." He looked down at Bolin's schoolwork. "But, for now, we should get our homework done."

Bolin sighed a little and smiled at Mako. "You're right, bro." he said. Mako stood up, but, before he could walk to his side of the room to do his homework, Bolin grabbed his shirt for a second. "Uh, Mako, could you help me with my work? It's really confusing."

Mako chuckled and turned around to sit on Bolin's bed again. "Alright, show me what's wrong."

...

Korra's thoughts were about as troubled as everyone else's. She was still focusing on her feelings towards Asami or Kuvira, trying her best to decide on which would be better. To let go of her feelings for Asami and just let Kuvira in, or go back to Asami and hope that Kuvira wouldn't hate her too much?

"It's just not fair." Korra groaned. "Why couldn't Asami just recognize me so I wouldn't be going through all this pain?" She stared at her hands and closed then into fists. "I would blame Niko, but he makes her happy right..?"

Of course, Korra knew she wasn't completely innocent either. In a way, Asami was hurting just as much as she was and it was her fault. Korra knew that freezing her out wasn't necessarily the best solution to the problem, but it wasn't like she had many options. She was stuck at a crossroad of destiny of some sort. Go down one path and risk eternal pain again, or stay on the one she was starting down and lose the closest friend she's ever had. The inner turmoil Korra was experiencing was persistent in eating her alive. She closed her eyes and listened to the rain patter softly against her window. I guess this rain is helping me to relax.

Korra stepped off of her bed, feeling as if some fresh air would help clear her suffocating thoughts, and opened the window slightly to feel the cool air. She took a deep breath and sighed gratefully as the rain drizzled to the earth. All of a sudden, she saw something coming at her and almost hit her as she avoided it. It came through the window abd landed on the floor. She looked closer, noticing it was a very small pebble that probably wouldn't have hurt her even if it did hit her. Confused, Korra looked outside and down she saw a figure holding a guitar and an umbrella. She jumped back, but the person moved the umbrella and looked up. It was a worried Kuvira, standing in the rain.

Relieved, Korra opened the window more and leaned out. "Kuvira, babe, what are you doing throwing rocks at people? And...what's with the guitar? Why the heck are you outside in the rain?"

Kuvira relaxed herself before she answered with a genuine smile on her face while she blushed. "To answer your first question, I did it to get your attention like back in the really old days before phones were invented. And for the other questions… Korra, I'm here to officially tell you how I feel!"

Korra was even more confused from what Kuvira said as her eyebrow raised upward. "I don't understand... Why don't you come inside."

Kuvira put her umbrella down, holding her guitar at the ready. "Korra, I've been in love with you ever since the day I first saw you!" Korra blushed as she saw Kuvira raising her other hand to the guitar. "I'm about to do something completely embarrassing, something completely stupid, but this is the me that I only want you, Korra, to see."

Korra eyes started to water as she hid her face in her hands, shaking her head and laughing. "Spirits, Kuvira, seriously. What are you doing?"

Kuvira only replied with a bigger smile as she struck one of the strings on the guitar. "Korra," -she played another note on her guitar- "ever since I saw you four years ago, I have waited for the right moment to you how I feel. But I'm telling you right now, I'm making up for all the years and time I lost because of my fears with the Spirits as my witness and while the rain hits my face!" Korra, barely holding onto her tears, lowered her hands to look at her girlfriend. Kuvira put her hand where her heart is and declared, "From the bottom of my heart, Korra... I love you!"

Grinning and blushing deeply, Korra let a tear fall before wiping it away quickly. Satisfied, Kuvira got in position and started playing a really old classic song that she was sure would catch Korra off guard.

"Wise men say 'Only fools rush in', but I can't help falling in love with you. Shall I stay? Would it be a sin if I can't help falling in love with you? Like a river flows surely to the sea, darling, so it goes some things are meant to be. Take my hand. Take my whole life, too. For I can't help falling in love with you!" Kuvira sang, smiling the entire time.

As Korra listened to her singing, not even once did she think of Asami Sato but of Kuvira. Neither of them lost eye contact for even a split second as the guitar kept playing and the rain kept hitting the ground as softly as it could. Korra's heart fluttered and she couldn't speak. When Kuvira finally stopped playing, she was breathing heavily and pretty much soaked from the rainwater as she waited for Korra to respond to her heart melding message. The rain slowed from a downpour to a drizzle and silence fell between the lovers, the only thing breaking it was the soft hooting of a distant owl. Suddenly, Korra slammed the window shut and Kuvira's heart sank. She didn't know what to make of it until she heard the clicking sounds of a lock being undone and saw the front door open. She smiled at the sight of Korra running to her in her pajamas and she caught the smaller woman in her arms, also capturing her in a kiss so intense it warmed Kuvira up, despite the chill still passing through her.

"Kuvira, I'm so sorry." Korra said when she broke the kiss, looking down.

Kuvira lifted up face back up by her chin, smiling softly. "May I ask what for?"

Korra placed her forehead on Kuvira shoulder. "For being confused." There was another beat silence between them as they embraced in each other's warmth. "Kuvira, please come inside and spend the night with me." Korra said, almost too quiet for Kuvira to hear.

Kuvira's heart felt as if it had been struck lightning, but she took hold of her moral thoughts before they had a chance to get away. "I can't do that Korra, not yet at least." Kuvira held her closer. "But by tomorrow, everything should be clearer for you."

Korra pulled back from her and looked into her gentle emerald eyes that resembled Asami's. She shook the thought away before it could overwhelm her. "But you're cold. At least warm up before you leave. You came all the way out here for me, the least I can do is-"

Kuvira cut her off with a kiss. "Your love for me will warm me up, your kindness is what will push me to be a better me. You being next to me is what I strive for."

Korra looked up at her. "Kuvira..."

Kuvira pressed their foreheads together and both of them closed their eyes together. "All I ever wanted is to be the one to make you happy." Kuvira said. "I was really worried on the way here, thinking if I should turn back. If I'd hit you with that pebble, I would've ran." Both of them laughed and Kuvira looked at her, speaking again. "But I'm so glad that I didn't let fear hold me back. I'm glad that I've been given a chance to make you happy." Kuvira let Korra go and stepped back a little and Korra's face fell with disappointment. "But I do have to go. I have to prepare for what tomorrow will bring me."

"What will happen tomorrow?" Korra asked as she stepped closer to Kuvira again.

"I'm not sure, my love…but something big I guess. Really big." Kuvira said.

"Kuvira?" Korra hesitantly asked.

"What is it, Korra?" "Kuvira asked with Korra holding both her hands.

"I haven't finished my homework, and you're also my tutor, so could you help me?" Korra said.

"Is it really homework?" Kuvira said with a smile.

"Mhmm." Korra nodded.

"Why do I have the feeling you're still lying?" Kuvira said.

Korra blushed again. "Because I'm telling the truth and lying." Korra said in a whisper.

"Alright, I'll help. But as your tutor, not as your girlfrie nd. Got it." Kuvira said, smiling while pointing her finger at Korra.

Korra pulled Kuvira toward the house by her hand, but, before they could make it inside, Kuvira stopped short and made a face. "Ahh-" Korra looked back at her for a split second. "ACHOO!" Kuvira covered her nose and mouth with her elbow and Korra jumped, stepping back. Kuvira smiled and looked up. "Excuse me."

Korra laughed to herself. "Good thing you're coming in after all, huh?"

"What about your parents?" Kuvira asked, sniffing. "Won't they say something?"

Korra rolled her eyes and smiled, pulling Kuvira in through the door. "Just shut up and come in, you're fine."

...

Three hours has passed before Kuvira finally left to walk back home reluctantly. Korra tried everything to keep her, but Kuvira made it just as easy for her girlfriend to let her go, promising that she would see her in the morning. Korra watched from her window as Kuvira walked away from the house and turned up the sidewalk and disappeared up the street. She sighed and backed away from the window, sitting on her bed.

"Why couldn't she of stayed the night? I mean...just one lousy night, it's not like I would have-" Korra blushed as she realized what her true intentions were and put her face in her "Oh, who am I kidding? Kuvira wouldn't of let it go that far anyway..." Her cell phone rang on her dresser and she stood up, crossing the room to it. She picked it up. "Unless it's Kuvira, I'm going to be pi-" She turned the screen on and gasped. Asami was trying to call her. Korra heart started racing and she panicked. She couldn't bring herself to answer it and stared at Asami's name glowing on the screen until it stopped ringing several seconds later. The words '1 missed call' appeared before the screen went dark.

"Why is she calling me after all this time?" Korra looked back at the clock. "It's past midnight, I really should have fought harder to keep Kuvira here for the night. Mom and Dad even seemed happy enough to let her, but why did Asami call me?" Her phone buzzed in her hand, startling her. She turned the screen back on. Asami had sent her a text message. Korra bit her lip, but the urge to read it took over and she put her password in. She selected the message and it opened up. Taking a deep breath, she started reading.

-Hey, Korra,

I'm sorry I'm sending you a message so late and after so long. You might be asleep and just waking up to this, but I wanted to ask if you could talk to me tomorrow. I doubt you will, but I finally realized why you got so angry when I introduced you to Niko, why you've been avoiding me, why I have been so angry at Kuvira and myself after all this time. I'm so sorry Korra. I feel like a total idiot. I really hope that maybe I still exist somewhere inside you...-

Korra let her phone fall from her shaking hands, anger starting to build up inside of her. She closed her eyes to hold in the hot tears brimming her eyes and gritting her teeth. "No, I was so close!" she cried. "Why does this have to happen when I was so close?!"

She heard footsteps running to her room and the door opened, revealing her mother who rushed to her side. "Sweatheart, is everything okay?" she asked with a gentle voice, laying a hand on Korra's shoulder. Korra looked up at her mother, but couldn't figure out the right words to say. "Korra, please tell me. Your tutor was here, you should be happy. Or tired, at least." Korra bent down and picked up her phone from the floor. She held it up for her mother to see and Senna raised her head in realization. "Ah, I understand. Still having girl troubles." Korra nodded in response.

Senna wrapped her arms around her daughter and Korra laid her head on her mother's shoulder. "You know," her mother began. "You telling your father and I that you were dating your tutor was crazy enough as it was, but we knew she made you happy. I can't and won't tell you what to do, but whoever makes you the happiest, whoever is the one you want to wake up to the most should be the one. I love you Korra." Senna kisses Korra on the head, then yawned with a laugh. "Dear me, I'm too old and tired to be up this long. Goodnight, Korra."

Korra hugged her mom and smiled gratefully. "Thanks, mom. I really appreciate you understanding me and my feelings."

Senna hugged her back. "Of course, sweatheart." She smiled. "I'll be honest, when you first told us you were in love with your friend who was a girl, me and your father didn't know what to do. But we knew you were still our daughter and we are still your parents. So, at the end of the day, we should always stick together." Senna then gives Korra a gentle shove back onto the bed. "But, for now, you need to sleep and so do I."

Senna headed for the door, turning off the lights.

"Goodnight, mom." Korra said as she left.

She turned over on her side, staring at her alarm clock. She briefly wondered what Kuvira had meant by something big going on that day, but she was too tired to worry about it. 'I guess I'll find out later today...' she thought as she yawned and gave away to sleep.

...


	15. Ready?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which everything you thought you knew is a lie. It all goes down.

Author's Note: Ah, another chapter. When shit really goes down! I hope you guys are ready! The ending is drawing nearer and nearer... And for those of you that reconsidered and are now rooting for Korvira, you might want to think again...

...

It was morning. Finally morning. And everyone knew what that meant. It was time. Asami, Bolin, Mako, Korra, Niko, and Kuvira woke up. Some woke up really groggy, some woke up really confused. But one in particular woke up with the eyes of a lion. She knew that the battle was around the corner and she was as prepared as one could be.

Kuvira got up from her bed and cleaned herself up like any normal girl would, as if it were a normal day. She brushed, flossed, washed her face, showered and even put a little make up on. But nothing compared to Asami, her ultimate love rival, her last trial before she could finally deem herself worthy.

"It's finally that time, mother." Kuvira said, picking up and looking at the picture of her mother, father and herself many years ago. "I'm sorry that I'm not the picture perfect girl with a husband like you wanted...but, starting today, I'll be the happiest girl the world will ever see. Just you watch."

Kuvira put her photo down and took a look at the red string around her wrist. She looked at the end where there was a tag that said Korra. "Korra, please, just a little bit more. Then you and I will be together forever."

'But what if it doesn't work?' Her thoughts were getting the best of her. "No! It will work!" Kuvira said to her inner demons. "I must keep control, control, I am in control of my own mind, my own body, and my spir-." 'But what if she leaves me like Mom and Dad?' "No!" Kuvira took her bags and ran downstairs, almost tripping over herself as she ran past Lin.

"Wait Kuvira!" Lin called, but she was already out the door. "Damn, she forgot her lunch. Oh well, I think I'll just drop by to give it to her later just to be nice."

At the school grounds, Niko walked up to the school toward Mako and Bolin. The brothers saw him approach and three stared at each other as a few grey clouds gathered in the sky.

"I knew this week would be a rainy one, but it's been raining for the past few days." Mako said, looking upward with a serious face.

"Yeah it has. They say that the rain either symbolize either God's tears, or something bad is happening." Bolin said to Mako.

"Or made something is 'about' to happen." Niko said almost under his breath. Mako and Bolin looked to him in curiosity.

"What would you mean by 'about' to happen?" Mako said to him.

Niko looked down, depressed and a little frustrated. "Don't worry about it. You guys remember the plan, right?" Mako and Bolin nodded.

"Of course." Bolin said.

"Good, because they're gonna start before anyone's ready." Niko said as walked away slowly toward the school building

The brothers faced each other and said simultaneously, "What?"

Asami got to the school early, walking with her best foot forward. She was about as ready as one could be to come out to Korra and tell her how it felt. She wasn't guaranteed that it would be easy, and she wasn't expecting it to be. She just hoped that she wouldn't be too late...

She saw Niko walking ahead of her and a small smile graced her lips as she picked up the pace to catch up with him. "Hey Niko." she called out as she grabbed his arm gently, getting his attention.

"Oh, hey, Asami." Niko said, returning her smile. It seemed a little forced. "Are you ready for today?"

Asami lost her smile and looked down for a bit. Not in fear, but sadness. She bit her lip nervously before looking up again. She caught Niko's eyes and could see the pain in them he was trying to hide. It just made her feel worse. "Niko, I'm so sorry things didn't work as planned between us." she said.

Niko shrugged. "It's alright, I'll get over it. As long as you're happy."

Asami stared into his eyes, waiting for him to speak again. When he didn't, she did instead. "Thank you for everything that we did so far and I hope we can still be friends after this." She smiled again. "I don't know very many guys that would do what you did for me. I owe you so much."

Niko laughed to himself. "Well, you better hope she didn't get over you just yet or this will all of been for nothing. Mako and Bolin remember the plan to get you to Korra, but they might also keep you from Kuvira."

Asami looked away for a second, looking around the hallway as students passed by them. "Right, Kuvira." She said absently before giving Niko her attention again. "I want to talk to her while I have the chance. Do you know where she might be?"

"I'm not sure, but you have to be ready." Niko said. His tone didn't leave much room for argument, not that Asami was going to. "She's not gonna go easy on you, she's-" Niko cut his sentence short, his eyes wide with shock and fear. Asami looked at him, confused.

"Niko, what's wrong?" she asked.

Niko nodded behind her and Asami looked over her shoulder slowly. Approaching her was Kuvira, her new and last love rival. Kuvira kept her straight face miraculously, but her eyes showed just as much fierce emotion as her face could.

"Hello, Asami." Kuvira said, her voice uncaring as if she couldn't give the greeting a second thought. She looked at Niko and nodded him dismissively.

"Asami?" Niko glanced back at Asami, concerned. He was worried for Asami, but she looked to him with a smile.

"It's okay, I'll be fine." she said, surprised at how calm she sounded. Inside, she was a nervous wreck. "We'll probably be hanging out regardless what happens today, might as well get along now. Go ahead." She didn't believe one word she said, she had no intentions in getting along with Kuvira. She still had to make it sound good, though.

Niko nodded, his face stern. He gave Kuvira one more glance before he turned on his heel, walking away while other classmates in the hallway looked at the two girls staring down at each other. They didn't care for the attention right away.

"Asami Sato." Kuvira said. "There is no reason we can't talk to each other like civilized people, so why don't we do just that? In a more private area."

Asami took out her phone and checked the time. She bit the inside of her cheek, not really looking forward to being alone with Kuvira. But she wasn't going to turn her down, either. "We have fifteen minutes. Fine. Let's talk."

Kuvira and Asami walked off while both girls looked at the curious crowd making sure none has followed.

The two girls stopped outside behind the school, standing a fair distance away from each other. Kuvira slouched on the tree, crossing her arms as she looked Asami straight in the eyes. Asami just stood there studying Kuvira for any expression change, for any weaknesses. Assessing the enemy, as some called it.

"Alright, what do you want to 'talk' about?" Asami said, trying not to sound annoyed or impatient.

Kuvira sighed, only to pull herself up. "Look," she began. "I can see it in your eyes that you finally realize your love for Korra. I should blame myself."

Asami looked at her. "Blame yourself?"

Kuvira smirked slightly. "Who told you?" Asami demanded, staring at her. "We only have ten minutes and Korra should be here anytime now, so just spill it."

Kuvira straightened up, looking to her with demeanor. "I'll say this once." Her voice came out a threatening growl almost. "Stand down and give up on Korra." Asami brow crookedly slouched down angrily to her. "There is no hope for you trying to love her anymore. 'Cause now I fulfill that role." Asami didn't budge as she listened.

"Your so naïve." Kuvira laughed silently to herself.

"Care to run that one by me again?" Asami said.

"Don't be stupid, I know it was Niko who told you. The moment when I spoke to him the other night-"

"You spoke with him!"

"Don't be so over dramatic. I spoke with all three of them. But my mistake was with adding Niko to the conversation." Kuvira let just a bit of emotion show, her expression turning to a grimace. "He told you."

Asami figured that there was no reason to lie, it wouldn't do her any good in her current situation. She sighed. "Yes, it's true. He is the one that had to fill me in." Asami slouched in defeat.

Kuvira laughed aloud. "This is exactly what I've said before. You've got such a big brain that's all fixed with hair and your eyes all covered with make up, you can barely realize the good things that life offers you." Kuvira's eyes flashed mischievously. "But I'm more than happy to take them."

Asami took a step forward to her, her hands clenching into fists. "Kuvira, I realize my mistake. I finally know what I put Korra through and I wish that she would have told me." She took a deep breath to calm herself. "But that's the past and this is now, so even if I have to face you for Korra I will."

Kuvira's facial expression turned to stone again, the only thing left of her anger was the sight set of her jaw. "I'll say this one more time and it will be your last chance."

They both stared each other down as time kept on moving. "Give up on Korra, there's no need for us to be fighting." Kuvira went on. "Before, you were only friends with her and then, overnight apparently, your ex-boyfriend of all people made you realize you're bisexual." Asami face scrunched up, but she said nothing. "You have been friends with her for four years and have been content with being friends only." Kuvira started circling her like a shark. "All that time, you had the chance to gain what I have." Kuvira leaned in close to Asami's right ear. "Korra's heart." Asami jumped slightly, startled, and looked back at Kuvira as she grinned ever so viciously. "I never will be the one to tell you to stop being her friend. In fact I'll help and support your friendship with Korra. So," Kuvira stuck her hand out good naturedly towards Asami. "why not we put all this nonsense behind us, be friends, and work together?" Asami practically glared at Kuvira's hand that was extended in her direction. "You still have Niko and he obviously still has feelings for you. I guarantee if you talk to him he would take you back in a heartbeat. So what do you say? Partners?"

Asami pushed her hand away and looked straight into the face of danger. "No."

Kuvira started to twitch from her neck up a few times and she giggled through her nose to hold in her anger. "Alright, I'll be extra nice to you one last time since you are MY girlfriend's friend. Give up on Korra, and this time, choose your next words carefully. Or you will regret the consequences."

Asami didn't lose eye contact with her as she gave her answer wholeheartedly. "Sorry, Kuvira," she said. "I'm not taking your offer, nor will I be stifled by your idle threats. I love her, I love Korra. I may be late, very late at that, but I will make that up to her starting today."

Kuvira was twitching heavily while her breathing came huskily for a brief minute. Moments later, she regained her momentum and pulled herself back to reality. "I see then, Asami." Kuvira leaned forward, no more than an inch close to Asami, giving a smile seemingly gently at first till she let her grin pull as hard as it could and wrinkled her entire cheek area while her eyebrow curved.

"Be prepared to dig your own grave!" Kuvira stormed off into the school as Asami stood there in grief and disarray. She head the school bells ring and shook her head to clear her mind.

"I…I have to get to class." Asami walked up into the school with a straight face, thinking of her conversation and what will happen to her.

...

Kuvira pulled her phone out of her pocket as she made her way to her first period class and stopped short, finding that she had a missed text message from her Korra. Her darkened mood brightened slightly and she smiled as she opened the text to read it.

~Hey, Kuvira

I need you to tell my teachers that I'm either going to be late or not be there because I have a doctor's appointment. Would you believe that I forgot about my own appointment xD Mom was really mad at me an she's driving me there now. It shouldn't take long, but the drive there and back is the kicker, so I'll probably be there at gym or afterwards at lunch.

Love ya, babe xoxo~

Kuvira smiled to herself and blushed, only to turn around and see Asami walk past her to the door in front of Kuvira. She didn't realize she was standing in front of her class.

"Why are you in front of my classroom, Kuvira?" Asami said.

Kuvira looked back at her with no regards, but put her phone away. "I'm sorry, I was distracted by an odorous perfume." Asami gritted her teeth as she walked into her class, the teacher immediately calling her out about how late she was.

Kuvira was about to walk to her classroom until she paused again and looked at her phone again, pondering what to do. "No, I already have a secure future as Chief of Police when I get my high school diploma, one day won't change a dime for me. But this battle will decide my life with Korra." Kuvira snuck outside without being noticed while she reached her phone once more and made a call.

A ring was being heard in an office booth at Republic City police station.

"Hello, Republic City Police Force at your service. What's the emergency?" the person on the other side of the line said with a tiring gesture as if he'd been working all day.

"Hello there Baatar, or should I just call you ex?" Kuvira said in a sweet tone, but didn't bother masking her sarcasm.

"Kuvira, I'm not in the mood." Baatar Jr. said. "But if you're calling me now, it can't be for anything good. What do you want, more of that booze for your father? I'll get you more later this week."

"No, it's not that." Kuvira said with a small laugh, then she changed the tone of her voice "But seriously, I'm going to ask you a favor you cannot refuse if you want to keep your damn job when I become Chief of Police." Kuvira said, which made Baatar shiver and sigh depressingly as he covered his face with his free hand.

"What do you want?"

"I need you to distract a student that comes to this school. His name is Niko." Kuvira's voice trembled a bit with anger. "He's a pest and I need him gone in less than an hour- No, make in an hour and thirty minutes. Just to be safe." Kuvira said, trying to put her plans together in her mind.

"Why do you want me to get some boy from your school, isn't this going overboard?" Baatar asked, waiting for a response. Then he heard a giggle that was rather terrifying to hear.

"Oh, Baatar, you know me well enough to also know that there's no length that I won't go to get what I want. Now you will do as I say, won't you?!" Kuvira said once again in a serious tone.

"I understand. It will be cutting it very close, but I'll do it." Baatar said, defeated.

"Excellent. Now I don't care how you do it, but you need to keep him as long as you can. I'll send you a picture so you'll know who he is." She hung up the phone before Baatar could reply.

Satisfied with herself so far, she then went up to a club room that was full of other students both buff, handsome, and groomed and others not so much. She opened the door to the club like she was in charge, walking right in and everyone looked at her.

"Oh, Kuvira, hey! I haven't seen you since you got together with that girl Korra." One of the students mentioned.

"Yes, Zulan, it has been a long time since I've been to this fanfictionist club, but I've got a few favors to ask all of you."

The gentlemen looked towards her as they stopped what they were doing. "Well, alright. Then spill what ya want, Kuvira!" They all looked toward her, anxious to know what her desire was.

"Zulan, Kopal, Xaviet, Obba, and Volt, I need not only you all to recruit as many guys similar to your looks, but to also make sure Mako and Bolin keep an eye on Asami so she doesn't come between me and Korra. That's one."

The guys stood and listened attentively, growing intensely interested at what she said. "And if they don't?" Kopal asked curiously and Kuvira shrugged with a menacing grin.

"Then by all means do what seems fitting to get the point across that they made a bad choice. And please send the message…thoroughly." she said.

The guys laughed just the more eagerly. "Yes ma'am."

"Then, secondly, I want you all to attract all the girls you know that are closest to Korra, Asami, Mako, and Bolin just to make sure that they don't intervene with my plans during gym and lunch." Kuvira instructed

Xaviet gave a grin and came up. "And how do you want us to do that exactly?"

Kuvira looked to him and gave him a glare then sent shivers through him. "You can flirt, deceive, dominate or whatever. I don't even care if you take then to the storage room and fuck them on the spot, I don't want them involved! Am I clear, gentlemen?!" Kuvira said, looking at each and every one of them expectantly.

The guys took an army stance side by side, mocking a salute. "Yes, ma'am!"

"Lastly, when Korra arrives, I want Obba, since he has the better looks over all of you, to flirt with her." The men got offilly confused when she made that statement.

"Uhh, Kuvira, I could do that..but isn't that your turf to cross?" Obba said, scratching the back of his head.

Kuvira looked at him as if he was a moron. "Why, Obba, I thought you were smarter than this." Kuvira walked toward him slowly and calmly but surly. When they were face to face, she pulled his chin up to make personal eye contact. "I want you to make me look good in front of her. That's how I'm going to get the brownie points I need so that everything falls to plan even more smoothly." Kuvira pushed him back onto the chair behind him, then stood back where she originally was.

"Kuvira, why go so far for this girl? She's only one girl in a sea full of others that's probably better." Volt asked nervously. Kuvira gave him her full attention.

"It's simple really. Because the red string demands this, and I will get what I desire for my future, for my dream, for my satisfaction, for my life and I will do whatever I have to to ensure that that happens!" Kuvira said.

Everyone could only stare as Kuvira became more and more menacing.

"Korra still has feelings for Asami, and it's my fault that Asami now knows how she feels about her. My including Niko in the conversation I had the other night has put me in a tight spot. Asami now has her eyes opened and her plans need to be terminated figuratively." Kuvira began pacing, the eyes of the fellow guys watching her movements. "If Korra and Asami meet even once and have a proper conversation, I know deep down that she will follow her. That's why this is my last chance to claim Korra's heart." She looked up at the guys again. "Will you assist me? I can assure you that I can provide you a secure future as men of my police force when I become Chief!" The men cheered gratefully and Kuvira smiled, thoroughly proud of herself. Her phone buzzed in her pocket and she pulled it out. It was another text from Korra.

~Hey, babe, it's me again. I'll be there in uhh forty-five minutes, so I'll probably be there in time for gym. See you soon! Xoxo~

Kuvira blushed again as she scrolled up her phone screen and set both messages as 'not read'. As she put her phone away, she made eye contact with each of the students standing before her. "Does everyone understand the plan?"

All the men gave a sinister grin. "So long as you keep your end of the bargain when Lin Beifong retires, we will keep ours." Zulan said while chuckling under his breath.

"Very good." Kuvira said. She opened the door, but said before going out, "Don't let me down."

...

Niko was taking notes in his class two desks ahead of Asami while the teacher continued on with his lesson. Distracted by his thoughts, his eyes started wandering around the classroom. He felt a slight chill run down his spine as if he was being watched, and with that fact he looked to the door. Outside the class, through the window, he saw pure green eyes staring at him intensely. They were just staring at him not flinching or blinking at all. He was shaking nervously, fully aware that the person was Kuvira. A flash of light happened through the window and he flinched, gasping. Te teacher saw him and walked to him.

"Is everything alright, Niko? You're not usually this jumpy during my class lectures." the teacher questioned as he looked at Niko.

"No, Professor, but I think I saw someone outside the classroom." Niko pointed at the classroom door and the teacher followed his finger.

"Really now?" he said. Niko nodded. "I'll take a look." The teacher walked outside the classroom and saw not a soul in the hallway. "There's no one out there."

Niko was confused and scared while he looked down in shame. "It must have been my imagination, sir. It won't happen again." The professor let it go and walked back to the chalk board and going back to his lecture.

Kuvira, the other hand, was slick to hide behind the last locker. When the coast was clear, she reached in her pocket and edited the photo of Niko and made it visually lock onto him only. She sent the picture to Baatar and sent him a message.

~Baatar, you better be on your way because Korra will be here soon.~

She didn't have to wait long for a reply.

~I understand, I'll be there shortly.~

Kuvira looked at the message, confirming to herself that the plan will be flawless. T~hank you, Baatar. You can rest assure that you'll have a long-term contract with me, unlike what Lin offered you.~

~Yeah, it's no big I guess. I'm assuming this picture is of Niko, I'll make sure he doesn't get in your way.~

Kuvira looked at the message and deleted all of Baatar's replies to her and started walking toward where she left the fanfiction club. She felt her phone vibrate again in her hand, seeing it's Korra.

~Stuck in traffic, be there soon :)~

Kuvira looked at it, then set the message to 'unread'. She continued to the Club Room, opening the door.

"Obba, I need to make sure your in position." she said.

Obba was eating a snack while reading a book. He looked at her and gave a short reply. "Alright, alright. I'll be there, no worries."

Kuvira once again felt a feeling of relief as she heard the loud speakers go off above her.

"Niko, please report to the office. Niko, please report to the office." The speakers clicked off and Kuvira sat in the nearest chair, grinning menacingly.

...

Niko looked up, then behind himself to look at Asami. Asami shrugged her shoulders as Niko looked in front of him at the professor.

"Well, Niko, you're being called." he said, raising his eyebrows.

Highly confused, Niko simply got up and headed down to the office. He was completely lost in thought when he reached it until he saw an officer, a man, in a grey and black uniform with a well shaved mustache with wide glasses standing at attention before him.

"Um, hi." he said cautiously.

The officer smiled, but there was something off admit it. "You must be Niko. I'm Officer Baatar. I'm sorry I couldn't meet you at a better time." Baatar made a slight bow toward him.

Niko's eyebrows furrowed together. "Uhh, I don't understand, Officer. What do you want from me exactly?"

Baatar looked up to him, then at the woman sitting behind the desk. "Ma'am, there has been a family emergency and I will need to see Niko out of this building immediately. I will return him to the building if his parent sees fit."

The woman didn't really seem to be all that concerned since it was an officer. "Alright, but I would like a number to call you from."

"But of course ma'am." Baatar said. He took the small notepad the woman was holding out to him. "Here." He scribbled his personal number and gave it to her, then walked out with Niko.

"Not to be rude, but what's going on?" Niko said.

Baatar looked back to him and kept his face straight, hoping to hide behind his lie. "Niko, there has been a tragedy in your family and I have been asked by your father to pick you up, seeing that there was no one else in your family available. I'm sorry."

Niko's eyes widened in shock, believing the lie, and tears strewn down his face as he followed Baatar to the car. Baatar kept his poker face as hard as he could until he opened the back door. "Get in the car, sir. I'll explain more details along the way. Oh, and please give me your phone, it's against policy sadly to have people in the back of the car with possible direct contact besides the Officer themselves."

Niko was too saddened by the news to realize how ridiculous the lie was and gave him his phone. Baatar put it away in his pocket. "I also have to do a quick search of you. Also policy." Niko nodded, understanding as Baatar turned him around to the face the car. He pulled a pair of handcuffs off his belt and quickly grabbed Niko by his wrists, closing the cuffs around them.

Niko was caught off guard and started to panic, squirming in the cuffs. "WHAT THE HELL, LET ME GO!" Niko used his elbow and hit Baatar in his stomach, startling him momentarily, and attempted to use his leg to kick Baatar away. He failed and Baatar grabbed him again and shoved him into the car, slamming it shut, and looked around to check if it was safe. He noticed a car that pull up a few lanes away with a girl inside that looked like Korra. He smiled triumphantly, knowing he was just in time. Niko looked in the same direction, spotting her.

"Korra!" he yelled. "Korra, help me!"

It was to no avail. Korra couldn't hear him. Baatar got into the driver's seat of the cruiser, not paying Niko any mind as he took his car keys out and put them in the ignition. The car roared to life and he pulled away from the curb as fast as possible. He t

hen reached for his phone when he was a safe distance away and sent Kuvira a message.

~Mission accomplished. Niko is with me and Korra just arrived at the school.~

...

Author's Note: I do not own the OC's, they were created by lord moon44 from fanfiction :)

Thanks for reading!


	16. Here We Go

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which things get crazy.

Author's Note: Okay, there's a LOT going on in this chapter so try to keep up! I think we all hate Kuvira by this point, correct? But we know this isn't necessarily above her. Good thing she's a good guy in my other stories :D

...

Kuvira looked at her phone, opening the message she'd received from Baatar. She smiled victoriously. She looked up at Obba.

"It's time." she said.

Obba nodded and stood up, putting his book down and cracking his knuckles. "You got it, boss."

Obba headed out the room and Kuvira readied herself to follow. She erased the message sent by Baatar and walked one minute behind him.

...

Korra made it to the front desk and got an excuse slip for being late. She looked at her watch as she hurried through the hallway. She had one minute before the bell rang for gym. She heard someone coming up behind her and that someone tapped her shoulder. She turned around, ready to knock someone out. It was a tall boy, fair skinned with dark brown hair. He had grey eyes and his smile was suspicious.

"Hey, there." he said. "My name is Obba, and I can't help but notice how ravishing you look running to class."

Korra felt uneasy and her hand clenched into a fist, ready to knock his clock out, until a familiar voice sounded from up the hall.

"Hey, big guy! Didn't you know that girl you're flirting with is already taken?" Kuvira came up behind her girlfriend and pulled Korra close to her, looking Obba straight into the eye.

"My bad, I just couldn't help myself." Obba said, while Kuvira took a step forward. Obba took a step back.

"Well, too bad, 'cause she's mine. Now back off!" Kuvira demanded. Obba walked off grumbling, under his breath.

Korra was surprised. She'd never been protected before, she always handled herself. The only person she ever protected was-

'No, stop.' she thought to herself.

"Uhh, thank you Kuvira." she said, smiling a little. "I don't-" Korra was cut off by a big hug from Kuvira.

"Where were you all day? I was in class waiting for you and you never showed up and I was just terrified! I thought something happened to you!" Kuvira rambled, doing her best to sound hysterical and worried.

Korra smiled at her, raising an eyebrow. "Didn't you look at the messages I sent you?"

Kuvira could've been deemed best actress. She pouted, looking a lot like a lost puppy. "Messages?" She took her phone out, opening her messaging, and saw three "unread" messages. She flustered under false embarrassment. "Oh my, god. I'm such a moron." she muttered. "I…I never looked at my phone once, since I was so worried about you."

Kuvira and Korra hugged tightly as Korra kissed Kuvira's cheek. "You're not a moron, you just worry too much." Korra told her, smiling.

Kuvira blushed as she leaned in and kissed Korra on the lips intensely. When they broke, blue eyes gazed upon the green ones.

"You're right." Kuvira said. "I don't know what I would do without you, you mean so much to me." Korra looked down for a second and it was her turn to blush. "You really mean it, Kuvira?"

Kuvira brushed her nose against Korra's, chuckling. "Yes, Korra. I really do. You're my whole world and so much more." Korra felt so warm and at home and she fell further into Kuvira's embrace as the class bell rang.

Korra laughed softly and backed away slightly. "I think we should start heading to gym now." she said in a soft tone, looking deep into Kuvira's eyes.

"Of course, my love." Kuvira said as led Korra toward the gym area with her arm around Korra's waist. Kuvira smiled inwardly to herself, deep down believing that everything was falling into place as planned.

...

The guys were standing outside Mako and Bolin's classroom, waiting for them to come out. Looking inside, they could see them both stand from their desks and head for the door. When they came out, the guys casually followed them until getting in front of them.

"Hey, guys." Zulan said. Mako and Bolin eyed them warily as they were surrounded, not sure if this a brawl or whatever. They readied themselves regardless, preparing for anything.

"Alrigh, what do you guys want?" Mako demanded.

"Oh, we don't want any trouble. We just came to see if you wanted to join our club." Xaviet said.

"What kind of club is it?" Bolin said curiously, almost too interested.

"Fanfictions." Kopal said. When the brothers didn't reply, he rolled his eyes. "You know, the kind you write about your favorite stuff."

Mako could tell something was off and grabbed Bolin. "Sorry, but we got to make it to gym." He combed his brain for a lie, not wanting to give anything away. "You know how Coach Varrick is, he doesn't tolerate lateness."

Everyone in the Fanfic Club looked at each other. "Well, it will only take a few minutes." Volt said. "No need to feel alarmed at all, guys."

Mako still wasn't comfortable, but he figured he could sacrifice a few minutes. Gym was a whole period. "Fine, but only for a moment."

Mako and Bolin looked at each other as they followed the group.

...

Baatar had parked in an empty alley and was reading a magazine while Niko was shaking the cuffs. "Why are you doing this?! Let me go!" he demanded, banging on the bars.

Bataar had had enough. He turned around to face Niko, being met with angered hazel eyes.

"Listen, kid, I think you know why I'm doing this." Baatar said. "Don't worry, you're in no danger what so ever. I'm just keeping you here until lunch time."

The pieces came together in Niko's mind and his eyes widened in disbelief. "You…you're working for Kuvira, aren't you!?" he yelled.

Baatar flinched for a second before giving him an answer. "Yes, I am. But only because I have to."

Niko kicked the seat in front of him. "Bullshit!" he declared. "You're an officer, she has no power over you!"

Baatar slammed his fist against the bars that separated them, shocking Niko. "Not now, but at the end of the year she will become Chief of Police and she will have every right to either keep me or fire me!"

Niko sat back in the seat and laughed mockingly. "Oh, I get it! You're the guy Kuvira dumped four years ago, am I right? She left you to try and get to Korra."

Baatar's face held an expression of anger and regret as he slammed the bars yet again. "That's none of your business!" he said.

Niko dropped it, glad that he'd gotten somewhere with is captor. Somehow it didn't surprise him that Kuvira managed to get control of someone in the Police Force. He lowered his head down and saw something reflecting the sunlight peering in through the window. At closer inspection, he realized that it was a key. It occurred to him that, apparently during his struggle with Baatar, his keys had detached from his pants and fell inside the car. Niko kept himself from smiling and immediately started coming up with an escape plan.

"Look," Baatar said eventually, breaking the silence. His voice was much softer. He sighed. "Niko, right? I'm sorry I got angry before, but I had no choice. Kuvira is the only woman I could ever love. She was strong, intelligent, and independent and knew what she wanted." He laughed wistfully. "I felt hypnotized and weak at her gaze and all I ever wanted was for her to look at me again, even if it meant hurting me."

Niko made a quick remark, hoping to keep him distracted by talking. "Sounds like everyone is having love troubles, huh?"

Baatar couldn't help but laugh at that one. "Yeah, I guess you're right. But I can work close to her when she becomes Chief of Police and my two year contract as an officer will increase, giving me more benefits. And then, maybe while I get promoted, over time she will look at me again. I mean, her father likes me. I don't know how much that actually will affect her, but it should. She deserves to be with a man." Baatar made a face. "That sounds stupid, doesn't it?"

Niko was too focused on getting the keys to answer. Lucky for him, the alarm of the Police line covered up his silence. He snatched up the keys last second, hiding them just as Baatar answered it. Niko took his only chance at freedom.

"Yes ma'am I see." Baatar said. "So you'll visit her for lunch? That's nice, please tell her hi for me. No, I actually don't know her schedule, but you should get there before eleven thir-" Baatar was distracted by a clicking sound and looked back. Niko was free from the cuffs.

Niko got out of the car and ran as fast as he could. Baatar clenched his teeth, but kept his tone even. "Ma'am, I gotta go. I have something that I need to do." Baatar hung up the line and started the car, giving chase and turning on the sirens.

Niko was determined to escape from his captor, but almost felt a hint of remorse for the guy…Almost. Niko ran through some bushes and went straight for the school to warn Asami and her friends of Kuvira's plan.

...

Mako and Bolin finally made it to the Fanfiction Club and looked around, taking a seat.

"Well, what did you guys want to entice us with to convince us to join your club?" Bolin asked as Mako looked around and felt really uneasy.

"Well," one of the random guys said. "The Fanfic Club talks about almost anything really so long as you got the imagination and the patience. We also distract people."

"What?! Mako and Bolin exclaimed.

Before they knew it, another man came up behind Mako and Bolin with ropes and tied them up with quick precision to keep them secure. They started to yell when cloths were tied over their mouths. Mako and Bolin gave muffled cries for help as another guy came up to them. "Like we said, we don't want any trouble. Just your cooperation."

Mako wriggled fiercely, but gave up after a short time. He knew it was useless.

"Sorry, Mako," Kopal said, grinning. "even you won't get out of this one."

Two big guys lifted them up by the chairs and put them in the closet of the club room.

...

Asami felt uneasy, not seeing Mako, Bolin, and definitely not Niko for a long period of time was making her nervous. She felt as if she was walking into a trap. Still, trap or not, she had to get to gym so she could tell Korra how she felt and hope that she wasn't too late. And a trap wasn't going to stop her.

She wasn't too far from the gym when a guy, almost taller than her with light brown hair and auburn eyes stepped out in front of her. She stepped back, startled.

"Hello, Asami Sato." he said, smiling. "It's a pleasure. Of course, the pleasure is all mine." Asami almost gagged and grew more and more impatient the more he went on. "I wanted to ask you how you'd feel about going out tonight, maybe dinner. What do you say?"

Asami wasn't amused and shoved him to the side as another guy came in front of her.

"Yo, babe, what's with all the rushing?" he said. "You don't need to see anybody, do you? Now when you got a whole fan club just for you."

Asami gritted her teeth, seeing clearly through them. "Get out of my way, I have no business with any of you!" From the corner of her eye, Asami saw Kuvira walk by with Korra as she was on her phone texting. Asami's heart skipped unintentionally when Korra actually glanced at her over her shoulder. She saw regret clear as day in Korra's eyes. Instinct was telling her to protect Asami, but the force from Kuvira's arm around her waist told her otherwise. And that drove Asami crazy.

"Move I said!" Asami said angrily, which made Korra flinch harder and look down to avert her eyes. It also made Kuvira more determined to pull harder as Korra slouched her head on Kuvira's shoulder with discomfort.

Asami watched as they disappeared around the corner up ahead and looked all around to see if anyone she knew could help her. Instead, everyone was flirting and getting hit on. It was nothing more than a set up. Asami knew it was the work of Kuvira and knew she had to do something. She took a deep breath and shoved past the two guys.

"Hey, where are you going?" the first one said, grabbing her wrist.

Asami bared her teeth and turned around at an instant, raising her leg and kicking the guy in the stomach. His eyes widened and he let go out of shock. The second guy clenched his fist and came at her, first held high and Asami ducked under him. She swept her leg out, knocking the guy off his feet. He landed flat on his back and Asami grinned, resting her hands on her hips.

"You should know," she said sweetly. "my father had me in self-defense classes." With that, she turned and ran for the gym.

Kuvira and Korra made it to the locker room in the gym. While they changed into their gym clothes, Korra was still pondering if she should have gone and protected Asami. It would've been so easy to, just like it had been a month ago. So simple. But did she want to do that just so she could be pushed away again? The second time always hurts worse, right? She tried to imagine a different scenario, imagining if she did turn around. She'd fall all over again. Just one thankful look from those familiar emerald eyes, and there would be no doubt. Her mind was all over the place and she blinked her eyes, trying to keep in the tears that burned in them.

Kuvira came around the corner, dressed in her white t-shirt and green shorts. Korra was already fully dressed in a black t-shirt and baby blue basketball shorts. She looked up and met Kuvira's eyes. They were gentle, caring, and full of adoration. No matter what, Korra knew, they'd never match those of Asami's.

"Are you okay, babe?" Kuvira's voice came to her like a soothing medley as she crossed over to her. She wrapped her arm around Korra's waist.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Korra said. She was biting her tongue.

Whether Kuvira knew she was lying or not, she disregarded the matter and took Korra's hand. But not before kissing her in such a way that made her mind go blank and made her forget, even momentarily, about her troubles. Korra's heart raced and she kissed her back, closing her eyes and melding into it.

"Come on." Kuvira said against her lips, then backed away.

She steered Korra out of the locker rooms just as other students began filing in. Just as they exited, Korra saw the double doors of the gym open and Asami come through, her expression saddened. Her gaze was casted to the floor until she looked up. Their eyes locked. Korra froze, Kuvira's grip on her hand tightening slightly. Asami held back a smile as she picked up the pace. Korra looked to the side as Asami walked straight toward them.

"Korra, we need to talk." Asami said desperately. "Please."

Korra eyes widened, but Kuvira pulled Korra closer to her. "I'm sorry, Sato, but if you're going to do anything you'll need to change into your proper attire." she said, her tone practically threatening. "Tthis is gym time after all."

Korra looked back to Asami for a moment nervously and noticed an unnatural level of determination on the older girl's face. Her eyes tightened and her hands balled into fists as she walked away toward the locker room.

...

Mako and Bolin were still stuck in the closet. The whole time, Mako had been contemplating ways to escape. All of them led to nowhere. He was just about to give up when he sat back, resting his hands on a shelf behind him. That's when he realized just how much space his hands still had to move around, despite the ropes. He looked behind him. As he suspected, the ropes had loosened. He tapped Bolin with his foot and Bolin looked at him, confused. Mako jerked his head back for him to look and Bolin's eyes widened, then straightened up. He nodded.

Mako began shifting his shoulders back and forth, trying to slip one of his hands out, when they heard voices outside the closet.

"Hey, when is Kuvira coming back?" one guy said.

"She texted me not too long ago and said in an hour or so." a second voice said, his tone unimpressed. "She wants to make it look like a rescue mission just to impress that girlfriend of hers."

Mako and Bolin couldn't believe their ears as they continued listening.

"A rescue mission?" said the first voice. "Wouldn't that put the pin on us then?"

"Maybe, but it won't be too bad since Kuvira graduates in a few months. After that, she will give us good jobs and I can finally stop listening to my mother asking me to get a job and get a life." The one speaking chuckled. "I can finally be done with it. Like my dad always says, 'It's always good to pay a small price for something big in the future.'"

All the men laughed in agreement. Mako managed to slip his hand free and brought them around to get the rope off boss other wrist. He untied the cloth around his mouth and flexed his hands, smiling.

"Okay, Bolin, I'm going to set you free now." Bolin sat still as Mako untied him from the ropes.

"On the count to three, we run." Mako said, then grinned. "They're gonna put up a fight. Remember last year what we did in the field?"

"Oh, you know I do, Mako." Bolin replied, grinning back.

"One...two...three!" Mako and Bolin jumped out, surprising everyone and took them on in a five against two match.

...

All the girls and guys assembled in the gym, ready to play. Asami and Kuvira were in the middle of a stare down when Coach Varrick called out, "Alright ladies and gents, we are going to play some more volleyball. Today will actually be a relaxing day, so consider yourselves lucky. I'll pick the team captains." His eyes scanned the group of students. "Sato, Kuvira, you two get up here."

The two girls approached him and turned to face the others. There was a strange, tense atmosphere as the two rivals stood beside each other.

"Alright, heads or tails!" Varrick asked.

"Heads." Asami said.

"I guess I get tails." Kuvira said.

The coach flipped the coin in the air. As it flipped, Asami felt like the whole world was slowing down while Kuvira felt her luck wasn't running out anytime soon. The coin hit the floor and, much to Asami's dismay, it was tails..

Everyone took their place when they were called, Korra of course ending up on Kuvira's team. Asami's blood boiled the more see saw how Kuvira was getting her way. As they took their positions, Opal walked up to Asami.

"Hey, Asami, have you seen Bolin?" she said, concerned. "I haven't seen him since he left class."

"I haven't seen him or Mako." Asami said, her eyes not leaving Kuvira. She knew she had something to do with their and Niko's disappearance.

"Asami, you get the ball first." Varrick said to Asami and Zhu Li threw it to her.

Asami caught the ball easily with her hands. She looked toward the opposing team, her heart aching at the fact that she was up against Korra. She clenched her teeth at the smug grin on Kuvira's face. She tossed up the ball, biut didn't consider just how much power she was putting into her serve. The ball was meant for Kuvira, but it was headed straight for Korra at top speed. Asami panicked, fearing that she had really screwed up, when Kuvira counterd this and pushed Korra out of the way. The ball hit her the face instead as she fell back on her butt.

"Ahh, that hurt..." she hissed in pain, rubbing her forehead.

Korra ran up to Kuvira's side, kneeling beside her and checked on her. "Asami, what's the matter with you?" she said accusingly. "You could have seriosuly hurt her."

Asami could only pause in her moment of nostalgia, while Kuvira only chuckled from it.

"It's okay, babe." she said. "Remember when you did the same to Hisoka?"

Korra laughed, but felt a pang of confusion yet again as she looked toward Asami and back to Kuvira. "You're right, we make some mistakes don't we?"

Asami gritted her teeth in distress as guilt and hurt built up more and more in her system.

...

Author's Note: I can't wait to get rid of Kuvira xD It's gonna be so much fun!

Thanks for reading!


	17. The Truth (Part 1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which light is finally shed on the situation.

Niko was running as fast as he could to reach the school and get away from Baatar. His mind was going ten times faster than his feet could, however. He was getting bruised, cut and scratched from different prickly vines and he was ruining his clothes. He didn't have any way to contact his friends or any authorities, even though it was the authorities that put him in this mess. Ironic, isn't it? He was sure he was lost, but he could hear the sound of cars nearby. He didn't want to emerge from the trees until he was sure he was in the clear.

Baatar was getting frustrated, on the other hand. He was at least four blocks from the actual school, following the forest that runs around the city that separated him from it. "Fuck, how did I lose this brat? Kuvira will be totally pissed if he finds his way to school. The plan was to brainwash him into taking pity on me so he wouldn't rat on us and go back to his little ex!" Baatar was getting nowhere and became desperate. He put his car in park and jumped out of it, running into the forest to find him on foot.

Niko heard footsteps coming up behind him as he picked up the pace. Baatar could hear something in front of him. He knew he was on the right track as he leaned forward slightly and recalled all his to catch up with Niko. Niko looked behind him, seeing Baatar heading straight toward him. He turned to run faster, coming to an immediate stop when he realized there was a brick wall in his way. Baatar took the opportunity and charged forward to attempt a grapple and bring him back. Niko clenched his fist as tight as he could and he counted to three. Baatar was no more than a few steps from him and he ducked over to the left in a barrel roll. Baatar hit the wall head first, making his nose bleed massively and he cried out in pain. As Baatar turned around to cover his nose after the impact, Niko put every ounce of strength into his fist and punched Baatar in the face and he fell to the ground flat. Niko waved his hand to let some of the pain off, making a face.

"That's for making my day worse." he said, then went into Baatar's pocket and checked for his phone. He found it, also locating Baatar's phone, and ran off with both of them.

...

Mako and Bolin were finally through with there fight. They came out victorious, but were badly bruised as they felt numb all over and Mako had a black eye. The two brothers sat down in the middle of the floor for a second, back to back to catch their breath.

"Hey bro…" Mako spoke up, looking over his shoulder at Bolin.

"Yeah, whats up?" Bolin said.

"Why are we doing this again?" Mako asked. Bolin thought for a second before answering.

"Because we're Korra and Asami's best friends, and they trust us." Bolin said with a half smirk, since his lip was busted.

"Yeah, right... But do you think we're doing the right thing?" Mako said, looking down.

"What do you mean? Of course, we are." Bolin said, turning to look at Mako and wincing and the strain on his back and in his stomach. "Didn't you hear the guys that we beat up? This was all a set up."

"Yeah, but during our time of friendship with both of them we always saw Korra and Asami as friends." Mako replied. "And, yeah, I dated Asami and then she and I broke up…and then Korra was looking at Asami in that way." Bolin looked up when he heard sniffling noises.

"Mako?"

"I didn't understand it at first, that Korra loved Asami. When she told us, I just felt really confused. I mean, I know that we pretty much already knew, but to hear her actually say it..." He sighed heavily. "I felt bad for Korra because Asami didn't love her back, and that's why I question if we're right. She's happy, Bolin! Finally happy, after four years, and we're about to rush in and ruin it!" Mako slammed his hand on the ground but regretted it after as it was still bruised from all the fighting but didn't flinch for his emotions was what distracted most of the pain.

"Mako, I..." Bolin paused to form the proper sentence. "Do you really think Kuvira deserves happiness after all she's done to us?"

"I don't know... She's been after Korra since forever ago, and now she has her." He looked back at his brother. "Kuvira isn't the kindest person, but Asami is late. Really late."

"Yeah, she is." Bolin agreed. "But if Kuvira really wanted to prove that she was faithful to Korra, she would've been nicer to her friends. She's tricking her, Mako."

"I know that..." Mako said.

"Korra and Asami are our friends, best friends even. Even if the very next day they stop talking to us for some reason we don't understand. We need to be there for them." Bolin said. Mako nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, you're right." Mako said, slowly getting to his feet. He reached down with his good hand and Bolin clasped it. He pulled him to his feet, supporting his weight as he gritted his teeth in discomfort. When Bolin was steady on his feet, he headed for the door. "Let's go stop Kuvira."

As they headed down the hallway, he noticed that Bolin was smiling and laughing to himself. He raised an eyebrow curiously.

"Whats so funny, Bolin?"

"Did you notice that, during the entire fight, no teacher or some other student realized it even though we were totally going crazy?"

Mako grinned, chuckling. "Now that I think about it, that's just stupid."

"You know, if this was some fan fiction or a comic book this would be called plot armor." Mako and Bolin laughed together.

"Sorry, Bolin, we are as real as the next person, and we have to take care of real life business." Mako stated.

"What kind of business, brother?" Bolin asked, grinning slightly.

"Love issues, Bolin...love issues, and it doesn't get any easier from here." Mako said.

"I see... Mako?" Bolin said.

"What is it?" Mako said, glancing at him.

"Love stinks."

They practically burst out with laughter, but groaned at the pain surfacing in them.

...

At the office desk, a women in a black metal suit approached the secretary with a brown bag in her left hand and her other hand on her waist.

"I'm here to give Kuvira her lunch, can you tell me where she is?" Lin said to the woman.

The woman looked up from the papers in her hand, smiling. "Why, hello Lin." she said. "It's been so long."

"Kya... I didn't realize you worked here." Lin said, blinking.

"Yeah, well, I've been looking for something to do with all my free time, and I just changed shifts with the women from this morning." Kya said. "She looked like she needs to relax." She leaned forward slightly, smiling a bit. "Besides, Tenzin has been a real killjoy back at the island."

Lin couldn't help but chuckle a bit, allowing herself a small smile. "Well, it's great to see you." she said, blushing a bit. The Chief of Police was actually blushing.

Kya smiled softly. "Lin, I know we haven't talked much since we broke up, but you should at least visit the Air Temple once in a while. You could even bring Kuvira with you while you're at it."

"No thanks, but I appreciate the offer." Lin said. "Speaking of Kuvira, where would I find her? I want to bring her lunch. She forgot it."

"I didn't take you for the motherly type, Lin." Kya laughed at Lin's annoyed expression, waving it off. "How has she been anyway? I haven't seen her since I signed in little while ago and I didn't even get to talk to her."

"Well, it's complicated really." Lin said. "We barely talk, but she's a great student and a greater heir to my title. I'm retiring this June when Kuvira graduates from high school."

"She's already grown so much, I'm so proud." Kya smiled even more.

"Yeah, she's a grand fighter. A motivator, a speaker, she's someone any mother….would be proud of." Lin said softly to herself, but still audible for Kya to hear.

"She would be proud of both of you." Kya said in a comforting tone.

"I know, I just wish I could have done more for the girl. She should find herself a man soon and not make the same mistakes I did." Lin said, looking off to the side.

"You mean dating a girl and it not going your way?" Kya said, raising an eyebrow.

Lin looked back up in surprise. "No, wait, that's not how I-"

Kya cut her off instantly. "I don't regret falling for you all those years ago, things just don't go as planned. And I'm sorry if I hurt your feelings, but it's been so long and you still hold on to that grudge. You need to let it go."

Lin puffed her chest out. "I told you before, I don't care about that anymore." she stated. "Besides, women should be with men. It's just how it should be." Lin glared at Kya and she did the same.

"So if it's that simple where is your man?" Lin stared at her for a minute, dumbstruck, and Kya regretted what she said. She looked down and started writing something with a heavy expression.

"Where is she, Kya?" Lin said with a straight face.

"In the gym." Kya replied. She's not out, but she'll either be changing or be done changing by the time you make it in the gym." She also gave her directions to the gymnasium.

"Thank you… I'll be off." Lin did a 180 turn and walked away, but paused at the door and glanced back at Kya before she actually left.

Lin headed for the gym, then she stopped when she saw two young men rushing ahead of her to get to the gym, looking awfully beat up, and they went through the double doors. She almost followed suit before she heard yelling and screaming inside. She paused and listened with her ear to the door and what she heard made her mad, furious even. She stepped back and pushed the double doors open, announcing her arrival.

(Not too long before...)

Gym was almost over, and everyone was on their way to change from their gym clothes. Kuvira and Korra were about to head into the locker rooms first, but Korra froze when she heard her name being called by an all too familiar voice.

"Korra!" Asami cried, running up to them. Korra turned around, but Kuvira only glanced over her shoulder, clenching her fist.

"Asami..." Korra said, not really knowing what else she could say.

"Korra, I have to tell you something really important." Asami struggled to get the words out, raking her brain to find the right way to say it, when Kuvira finally stepped up.

"Haven't you had enough?" Kuvira spat and Asami looked at her. "Korra is with me now. We are happy and you're trying to ruin that. You're looking like a bad friend."

Korra wasn't fully aware of the situation, but she was feeling that whatever it was, it was bigger than they were saying. He gaze swept between her former love and her current.

Asami gritted her teeth. "No, Kuvira, I know you're the one behind my friends' disappearance!"

Everyone then looked toward them and gasped dramatically, while Kuvira rolled her eyes made and made her expression as casual as day to throw Asami off. "What are you talking about, I have nothing to do with anything. All you're doing is making excuses." She eyed Asami up and down suspiciously before continuing. "First, you attempted to hurt me while we were playing volleyball, not returning Korra's feelings the past two years, getting in the way of our love life, pointing fingers wherever it may please, and now you have the balls to blame me of your friends whereabouts when I was minding my own business?" Kuvira crossed her arms, making a face. "They could be in the bathroom taking a wiz for all I care!" Korra then looked at Asami as if she was committing a crime and Asami could only stand there in defeat.

"Wait what did you mean by not returning my feelings?" Korra said and Kuvira looked back to her.

"Asami has finally realized she has feelings for you." Kuvira said indifferently, gesturing to the opposing girl.

Korra's jaw fell open, as if she was going to say something, but it snapped shut as fast as it opened. Azure eyes met emeralds and Asami bit her lip, taking a small step forward.

"Korra, it's true." she finally said. "I do love you. I'm so sorry I didn't realize how much you meant to me, but it's true. I can't take back the years of waiting I put you through, but we can start over and be something great. I know that-"

Korra stomped her foot on the ground, causing Asami to freeze in the middle of her sentence. "Stop, don't say anymore!" she yelled, glaring at Asami. "You just now realize my feelings for you after two years and now, when I'm at my most happiest, you just want to step in and ruin it? How cruel are you?!" Korra looked deep into Asami eyes, all the while wishing that it wasn't happening with all her heart because she knew she still loved Asami. Her eyes went from angry to something softer, something more understanding. "Asami, you're my best friend. I didn't talk to you because I didn't want to feel hurt like I was when you introduced Niko..." She trailed off, her eyes narrowing for a second. "Wait, what happened to Niko?" Her gaze turned hard with suspicion. "Don't tell me you-!" Asami looked away, confirming what Korra wanted so badly not to believe. "How could you, Asami?! He loved you!"

Opal came up to her and placed a calming hand on her shoulder, her eyes slightly pleading. "Look, Korra, I know it looks bad and I don't know exactly what's going on, but you should at least give Asami the benefit of the doubt." she said.

Korra looked at her, then at the ground. A few moments of silence passed before Korra looked up again. "Fine, but it will never change the fact that it's too late for us…for our future."

Asami stood there, feeling as if her throat had dried and closed up on her. She swallowed thickly, doing her best to force the words out of her mouth. "It's because of Niko that I realized I was in love with you."

Korra eyes widened momentarily at her response, her heart pounding in her ears to the point she felt that it would come out of her chest. Korra eyes started to water and she grasped Kuvira's arm tighter, forcing herself to look away. Kuvira gave her hand a reassuring squeeze before looking at Asami.

"You see, Asami Sato, it's over and your foolishness must come to an end now..." She sighed as if she were bored. "But I am a generous person. I will give you a chance to redeem yourself as a friend to Korra. Sound fair?"

Asami could feel the pain crushing her heart, wearing it down, and in that moment she just wished she was dead. It would've been better. Everyone was looking at her, whispering and whispering. Rumors were going to spread around the school and she was faltering under the gravity of the humiliation that a Sato has been defeated. Still that didn't hurt worse than knowing that she'd fucked everything up between her and Korra romantically. If there was one thing Asami had, one thing that Asami would never lose, it was dignity.

She walked toward Korra and Kuvira, letting her hands hang loose at her sides as she held her head up high to mask her pain. Korra looked up and simply held Kuvira's hand as she locked eyes with Asami. She could've sworn she saw a slight blush cross her cheeks, but it was before she was sure. She came to a halt in front of the couple, blinking once to get rid of the tears gathering and blurring her vision.

"I'm-" She didn't get to finish. The clanging of the gym doors opening cut her off, followed by a distraught yell.

"Stop!"

Everyone looked toward where the cry had come from, and Asami's heart skipped. It was Niko, sweating profusely and bleeding from different cuts in his torn clothing. He was hunched over, his hands in fists on his knees. In his hands were two cell phones. When he looked up, he pointed straight at Kuvira. "It's..over...Kuvira." he breathed. "You've lost."

...


	18. It's Over (Part 2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which this crazy adventure comes to an end.

Author's Note: I want to thank you guys for sticking with me all this time. I know it's been crazy, not knowing when I'd update and what would happen next, but I can't say how thankful I am for your support and patience. I hope you all will follow me on my next crazy adventure (when I come up with it xD) and enjoy that as well.

...

"This...has gone on long enough...Kuvira." Niko panted, swallowing hard. He took small steps, but they were heavy enough to echo in the now silent gymnasium. Korra looked up at him, confused as to why he was calling out her girlfriend.

Asami's eyes went wide as she approached him, placing a soothing hand on his shoulder. "Niko, what happened to you?"

Niko made a face, his eyes shooting daggers as he glared at Kuvira, who was doing her very best to keep her expression in check. "This was all set up! By that bitch!" he declared, pointing at Kuvira again.

Everyone, including Korra, looked at Kuvira as she forced a grin and chuckled. "What are you talking about?" she said. "I've been in class this whole time, minding my own business."

Niko looked dead into her eyes. "You sent messages to the guy Bataar to keep me away from Asami so I wouldn't help her!"

Kuvira took her phone out. "You can check my phone, I have done no such thing."

Korra took her phone and looked into all her messages and emails. "She's right, Niko. She's hasn't texted anyone or received anyone's messages besides my own."

Korra was confused and Kuvira sighed a little bit, only to be interrupted by Niko. "Even you should know, Kuvira, that just because you cover your side of the tracks doesn't mean the other half is covered!" He took another step toward them and held up both phones. Much to Kuvira's dismay, Baatar never put a passcode on his phone. "Coach!" He said, seeing Varrick come out of his office. "Read everything on this phone!"

"What is all this about?" The coach said as he approached him and took the phone and read the entire conversation between Baatar and Kuvira. "Kuvira, you're in so much trouble!" he said, glaring at Kuvira.

Kuvira was feeling the panic rise in her system, and it got worse when Korra backed away from her. She started thinking of a way out. 'N-no, this can't be happening! I've got to come up with something!' She held herself together and came up with an idea. 'I still have Mako and Bolin with the boys, if I can use that to my advantage I can still make this work. I might not have the complete trust of Asami and Korra, but I can somehow talk sense into Korra. It will take a lot of convincing.'

All of a sudden, the double door entrance opened up and a bruised Mako and Bolin with tired faces, covered in sweat and a bit of blood, eyes swollen and colored purple, fell through. Everyone looked at them and Kuvira was feeling sicker to her stomach.

"This...whole thing…is a setup…Korra..." Mako panted, resting on his knees.

Bolin swallowed thickly before speaking. "He's…right…" he said. "She made...s-several plans to make herself look...good so you would...so you would stop loving…Asami..." Bolin fell to the floor and Mako straightened a bit when he looked at Niko.

"What happened to you two?" Niko asked.

"We got ambushed, or...kidnapped I guess, and ended up stuffed into a closet. We got out and beat five guys up. You?" Mako said

"Taken by a cop." Niko said with a small smile. "He was an idiot, though, because he'd dropped his keys and I got away."

"This is obviously a trap!" Kuvira scoffed and everyone looked at her, though none of them seemed convinced. "It's a setup!"

"And what makes you say that?" someone asked from the crowd, her tone suspicious.

"Don't you think it's a little off that they both come in here talking about ridiculous things like being taken by a cop and crammed in a closet?" Kuvira said, looking at her peers. "This is is just some sort of ploy to take Korra-"

"Kuvira."

Kuvira froze and looked to where the voice had come from. Korra. "Please, stop hurting yourself." Korra said, her eyes deeply saddened.

"Korra, I-" Kuvira began, but Korra cut her off again.

"I'm sorry Kuvira, I can't be with you anymore." Korra had her head down by that point, with mixed emotions boiling over because she could now see the women she trusted, loved, cared for, wished for, almost pledged her loyalty to, as she really was. A criminal, deviant, thug, a liar, control freak, puppet master and so much more.

Kuvira eyes widened and tears were building in them. The gym doors open again, standing there is Lin Beifong.

"Kuvira, what is the meaning of this?!" Lin demanded, trying to grasp the situation and looking at the three beaten and bruised men.

Kuvira was starting to feel sick again, her eyes were going dead red from stress. But she kept her hands behind her back like a soldier and her feet steady and separated only a few inches, keeping her posture as fixed as possible and working to show no emotion. Even so, she knew that if anyone were to look in her eyes directly, they'd see her internal struggle.

"So not only did you disobey me when told you to look for another man, but you also got into a scandal with these boys here!" Lin said. Her anger with Kuvira was peaking by the second.

The two made strong eye contact and Kuvira spoke. "My sexuality is mine to decide, and trust me when I say what you see here is nothing but idle talk Ms. Beifong." Kuvira wass stacking and piling on her lies and Lin didn't by any of it.

"Bullshit, Kuvira!" Niko said , pointing at her. "Not only did you use one of your men to take me captive, you also had Mako and Bolin held captive!"

"She used a good amount men to kidnap me and my brother to keep us from her so that she could keep Korra from being with Asami. She was afraid that Asami would take Korra from her." Mako said.

Kuvira was feeling threatened, everyone was looking at her. All of her lies, her plotting, was finally exposed. Korra had abandoned her, her back turned toward her, Asami looked down at her defeated state, Mako, Bolin, and Niko had exposed the truth to the entire school body, and now her own guardian had seen everything and all she could think about were her last moments with Korra.

"Kuvira, do you have anything to say for your actions?" Lin questioned, trying to grab Kuvira's attention.

Kuvira didn't budge. Her thoughts were muddled, lost. She couldn't focus anymore. It was as if life was dangling her future now before her eyes, taunting her and confirming that she'd lost. She felt a rough hand grab her arm and she dragged her eyes from their spot on the wall to see where the contact was coming from, her expression going slack with disbelief. It was Lin.

"I'm severely disappointed in you" Lin said. Kuvira didn't respond.

Asami approached her, her hand outstretched. Kuvira glared at her hand, following its arm up to Asami's face.

"Kuvira, I know we've had our differences in the past, but I was hoping that whatever happens next we can all come together and be…friends." Asami said with a real genuine smile. But Kuvira took it as a threat, she felt as if she was tormenting her with the words she said to her no more than ten minutes ago.

Lin took out her cuffs and reached for Kuvira's hands. Kuvira felt her hands bring pulled back and snatched them away, shoving Asami to the floor and going all out. " I love Korra! I love her, I love her, I love her! I won't let you take her away from-!" Korra grabbed Kuvira by the collar and yanked her off of Asami, delivering a hefty punch that was strong enough to knock her to the floor.

Kuvira hit the floor hard and covered her bruising jaw with her right hand. Lin started forward immediately with intent to grapple her. Kuvira heard her footsteps and pulled herself to her feet, dodging Lin and going for Asami again. Korra stopped her as she was pulling Asami up, standing in front of her. Kuvira and Korra blocked the other, guarded and each of them holding their own.

"Why, Korra?" Kuvira protested, her tone heavy and choked up. "I love you, I could have given everything to you!"

"What was it you could have given me? More lies and deceit?" Korra countered.

"It's her fault! Kuvira said, glaring daggers at Asami. "Look at you fighting me, look at her not even lifting a finger and thinking she's on top of the fucking world!" Korra took a step back and stared Kuvira down." You mean everything to me, don't you realize that?"

Korra looked down and clenched her teeth, her voice trembling when she spoke. "What does that have to do with hurting my friends and lying to me?"

"All I ever wanted was you!" Kuvira said, tears brimming in her eyes.

"And you prove that by making me drive Asami away?!" Korra yelled. "Do you not understand how much I've hurt her because of my stupidity, because of you?!" Kuvira cringed and Korra stepped towards her. "I thought you really cared about me, Kuvira! I thought you loved me!"

"I do-!"

"Someone that loves someone doesn't go behind their back and try to destroy everything they care about!" Korra said.

Kuvira hung her head, staring at the floor. "I never felt more loved from anyone in my life then when I was with you, no matter how short it was."

Korra's fist tightened and she looked away from Kuvira.

Lin came up behind Kuvira and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Kuvira…we have to go." She didn't bother to cuff her as they walked toward the gymnasium exit. The eyes of the students followed them, but Kuvira didn't have the patience to care anymore.

The doors opened before Lin and Kuvira reached them and Principal Raiko came into the gym with a few other teachers, holding the beaten and bruised students that where in the club.

"What is the meaning of all of this?" He demanded, his gaze sharp on the students. "Everyone go to your classrooms, the bell has rung. Mako, Korra, Bolin, Niko, and everyone else who is involved in this come with me!"

All of the students scrambled to grab their stuff and rush to their respectful classes except for the friends, who made their way to Raiko. Lin escorted Kuvira to the door, but Kuvira stopped when she reached Asami. She looked up at her. "I have failed Korra and I'm sorry about that, but I'm not sorry about you so listen up." she said.

"What is it?" Asami asked, crossing her arms.

"f I ever hear or see you hurting Korra in any way, shape or form in any matter of the definition, I swear I will make your life a living hell." Kuvira said. "And I won't fail then." With that, she let Lin lead her from the school.

~A little while later...~

Korra, Asami, Niko, Mako, and Bolin were being questioned for the events during gym. The boys went to the hospital and were being questioned there, Korra was already finished and was seated in the hallway, staring at the floor between her shoes. Principal Raiko's door opened and Asami emerged. She sat down beside Korra and an awkward silence ensued for a fair amount of time.

"So," Asami finally said. "you want to talk to me now or ignore me like you've been doing for the past month?"

Korra picked her head up and and saw Asami, who's attention was on the empty hallway.

"I'm sorry." Korra said softly. Asami heard her but didn't respond immediately. "Did….did you hear m, Asami?"

"Sorry…for what?" Asami said, and looked at her. Her emerald eyes were sadder than Korra liked, and her heart ached. It made Korra look away.

Korra knew where this was going and she really had to muster everything she had to make this work. "For…everything..."

"And what would 'everything' be?" Asami said. "I want to hear you say it, Korra."

"I'm sorry…for ignoring you for an entire month, for neglecting our friendship, for hurting your feelings, for acting like an awful friend, showing off Kuvira in front of you, and not protecting you from those assholes from earlier." Korra took deep, heavy breaths and she felt a soft hand on her shoulder.

Asami gave a genuine smile and placed her palm on Korra's left cheek. She pulled her close and Korra blushed heavily, swallowing thickly. Her heart pounded in her ears when Asami leaned forward and whispered into her ear, "You're forgetting to apologize for one…last…thing."

Asami moved her hands back to her lap, fighting a smile at how she'd left Korra awed for a few brief seconds.

Korra swallowed again, finding her voice. "And…I'm super, duper, ultra, mega, in the love that the Great Spirit Raava holds…I am…. so… sorry that I didn't talk to you directly about my feelings and avoided everything that has happened until now!" Immediately after she'd finished her sentence, Asami brought her in for a hug. Korra's eyes burned as she felt relief wash over her. She hugged Asami back tightly, burying her face in her neck.

"Its okay, Korra, we all make mistakes here and there." Asami pulled back a bit to gaze into Korra eyes. She cupped Korra's face with her hand, stroking her cheek with her thumb. Korra found comfort in it and leaned into her hand, only to have the moment ruined by Asami pinching her cheek painfully.

"Hey! What was that for?" Korra whined, rubbing her cheek when Asami moved her hand.

"It's just a little payback for ignoring me for the past month." Asami said, then brought Korra in for a kiss that lasted a few minutes. "And that's for saving me from your ex."

Asami then let her go and Korra fell back onto the floor, a blissful grin on her face. Asami giggled and stood up, taking out what seemed like a ticket from her pocket and dropping it on Korra's chest. She knelt down beside Korra's head and Korra looked at her.

"We are finished here, babe." she said. "So, when you're done lying on the floor, we need to visit the boys."

Korra's ears perked up, zeroing in on a certain word. "Wait…babe…as in?"

Asami smirked. "Yes, it's exactly what you're thinking."

Korra jolted upward and hugged Asami close to her. "Asami, I'm so glad that I haven't lost this opportunity with you! Don't worry I'll make sure to be a better fighter, a lover and all. I owe you a date, tell me where you want to go anywhere you like!"

Asami looked down and picked up the ticket that fell when Korra got up. "What's this?" Korra asked as Asami put the ticket in her hand.

"Remember when I came by to take you to the movies during your tutoring session?" Asami said. "I got us tickets to a different movie since the one I was going to isn't in theaters anymore. You can't turn me down this time, though."

Korra smiled at her and went in to kiss her, when the two girls heard coughing sounds behind them. It was Coach Varrick getting there attention.

"Sorry, ladies, for disturbing your 'fun', but you need to take this to another location since you're kind of in front of the school office…" Varrick was giving them questionable looks and the girls nodded, taking each other's hands and saying goodbye as they disappeared up the hall.

"Zhu Li, do the thing." Varrick said. Zhu Li came from the office with a cup of coffee and handed it to him. He took a sip, smiling. "Thank you."

Outside, Asami led Korra to her car and they got in. Korra thought of something when Asami started up the car and looked at her. "You think Kuvira will learn her lesson in juvie?"

"Who knows?" Asami said as she pulled away from the curb and grinned wickedly. "Maybe she'll find someone as crazy as she is."

The two of them laughed as they drove towards the hospital.

...

Author's Note: *falls to knees* It's... It's over... I finished it... What do I do with my life now? Just kidding! Again, thank you all for following this story and putting up with my many hiatus'! I love you guys!

Thanks for reading!


	19. Author's Ending Note

Author's Note: Just when I thought I could let this go!

Just kidding. On a serious note, I received a couple reviews that caught my attention. They talked about how they thought Asami should've apologized to Korra for also being completely unfair and not realizing her feelings sooner. And I'm going to say, they're right.

It never occurred to me to have Asami apologize to Korra. Did not cross my mind once. When this story was published on fanfiction, no one said that she should've apologized. That interested me. It showed me how many different views there are. And I kind of feel bad for not including that. And once I heard it, I felt the need to write a [very] brief addition of Asami apologizing. Here you are!

(I'll be taking it from when they kiss.)

...

Korra reveled in the feeling of Asami's lips against hers. She loved the way they moved in sync with hers, which is why she was confused when Asami paused and slowly backed away and looked down.

"Asami?" she said. "What's wrong?"

"Korra, I..." Asami trailed off and bit her lip. She looked up at Korra. "I haven't been fair to you either. And I'm sorry."

"It's fine-" Korra began, but Asami stopped her.

"No, it's not." Asami said. "I made you feel like you had to find someone else to feel loved and wanted. I drove you away as much as you did to me. Maybe even more." She stared down at her hands in her lap. "I should've known when I saw Kuvira walk out of your house that I wasn't okay with it. The jealousy I felt...

"I didn't know of my feelings for you when I needed to. And you and I both know that, if I did, we wouldn't be in this situation. Mako, Bolin and Niko wouldn't be in the hospital, Kuvira wouldn't be going to jail, and you..." Asami took a breath. "You and I would've been happier sooner."

Korra watched Asami intently, waiting for her to continue. When she didn't she hooked a finger under the girl's chin and lifted her head up, capturing her in a gentle kiss.

"Asami, I forgive you." she said, and chuckled softly. "Maybe I'm being a bit to hasty in that decision, but I don't care. Yes, things would be different if you knew before. And yes, they'd be normal." She took Asami's hand in hers and smiled. "But I know for a fact that you'll make it up to me in the long run. Won't you?" She raised a teasing eyebrow.

"For sure." Asami said, and returned Korra's smile.

...

Author's Note: And there you go! Hope you enjoyed, my friends!

Thanks for reading!


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